Out of Tricks
by This Is Sarcasm
Summary: It's hard to adopt a young child when most are afraid of your scars... but somehow, Garrus and Tali manage to find the one in a million who doesn't mind a missile-rent face. But as Thracius soon discovers, being a Normandy kid is complicated; your family extends to Specters, the Shadow Broker, and 15 Krogan cousins(and climbing). And then, there's the Terminus Systems problem...
1. Out of Tricks

Thracius ran. He ran like the Reapers themselves were behind him.

There was no way out.

He'd spent so long looking... so long searching so desperately... his father was _right here_...

There was no way out.

So close, yet so far! Like some cruel joke, like the galaxy was laughing at him. Morgan would laugh at him... _oh_ , he certainly would. Here he was, Thracius Vakarian... for once, he was all out of tricks. There was no place to hide, no clever plan, and, as far as he knew, nobody coming to save him this time. His last, laughable mistake, was to do what he'd promised Sotta he wouldn't do; he'd gone in alone. He'd been chasing a lead, he hadn't planned on it actually resulting in anything useful.

His old line to Feron had gone out of service long ago, likely replaced by some more urgently important Shadow Broker contact. The _London Bound_ ground team had long since broken up, scattered to the winds. Grunt to lead Aralahk Company, Vega to teach the N7's, Javik to... wherever it was that Javik had gone. And poor Ashley...

Bullets send grit flying up at his feet as he ran, jerking him out of his hopeless thoughts, reminding him that, no matter how far he ran, there was no way-

He screamed as a bullet pierced through his armor, and his leg buckled under him, sending him tumbling painfully into the nearest ditch. Mandibles pressed tightly against his jaw, he gripped his leg, trying to stem the flow of blood. Above and behind, bullets still flew, and the boom of a ship breaking atmosphere completed his world of hopelessness.

There was no way out.

* * *

 **Many Years Previously...**

It always started out the same. Thracius saw it happen every other week. The seeking couple would walk into the orphanage, uncertain about which child to choose. They would walk among them, looking for one to talk to. And once they started talking... they started deciding. And it was usually the kid they talked to who left with the couple.

It had been two years since the Reaper War. And with such an abundance of orphans still at large, the chances of actually being chosen was slim to none, unless you were the first person to talk to the prospective adults. Thracius, who had long since forgotten his original family name, was five. Five, and very observant, because the first thing he noticed about this couple... was that the other kids wanted nothing to do with them once they spotted the man.

They were a cross-species couple, Turian and Quarian. Her environmental suit was quite pretty, and his colony markings stood out on gray scales, with glittering blue eyes that currently looked almost ashamed. Thracius watched them carefully. One Human girl peeked around to get a good look at the Turians right side, made a frightened 'eep' sound, and ran off. She was four. She didn't remember the war, a lot of the kids in this end of the ward didn't; Thracius did. He'd been old enough to remember. It had been horrible, he'd seen the scariest, most terrifying things in his life, but it was over.

So when the couple sat down at the end of the room, he wondered what could be so horrible the other kids didn't like the Turian. So it was that he inched closer, just enough until he could see...

The right side of the Turian's face had been mutilated. Horribly. Some of it looked like old burns, some it, like cuts. _Did he get that during the war?_ The Reapers had liked blowing things up; maybe the Turian had gotten caught in a blast.

"...offered once to fix my face; maybe I should take her up on it." he was saying ruefully. His mandibles flickered.

"No. We'll find a kid who doesn't mind, or we won't find one at all." The Quarian woman declared. "It's your _face_ , Garrus. I didn't fall in love with it just for you to go changing it. And contrary to popular belief, it's the best face ever."

Thracius couldn't resist giggling. Oh, why did he have to giggle! In a split second, both adults were looking at him, and he was painfully aware he'd been caught eavesdropping. He quickly looked at his feet.

"Sorry!" he felt his mandibles flicker with unease. Being rude was the worst thing to do to someone looking for a kid, and he'd just _eavesdropped_! He'd never felt so ashamed.

"No worries." The Quarian said warily. "It's a small ward; we don't mind if others overhear."

"Oh. Good." Thracius said quietly. "Because there's lots to overhear. Not much people can do to keep privacy... even if it _should_ be private."

It was true; he'd overheard a lot of things. Sometimes bad things, kids planning to play mean tricks on other kids, adults saying nasty things about the younger children. He knew why nobody wanted the younger kids; they got underfoot too much. They were considered annoying. This was the first couple he'd seen in the younger kids' ward in over a month.

"What do you mean?" 'Garrus' asked. He didn't sound accusatory, and Thracius forced himself to meet the older Turian in the eyes as he shrugged.

"You just hear things if you listen. And if all you do is talk, then other people hear things from you; maybe something you shouldn't want other people to hear. Like Ronda." he pointed discreetly at a dark-skinned Human girl. "I heard her telling her friends she was going to put itching powder in Will's bunk. I told Will, though. He says he's going to leave a bag of turds in his bed so when she tries, her hands'll get all gross. So I told Ronda. Then, I heard them both planning to put turds and itching powder in my bed, so I switched beds today. They don't know that, yet, though."

The Turian was giving him a look of absurdity, and he exchanged glances with his partner... or, at least, that was what it looked like to Thracius; it was hard to tell through the Quarian's fogged-out mask.

"That's... awfully clever of you..." Garrus trailed off, looking at him expectantly.

"Thracius." he told him.

"That's awfully clever of you, Thracius." his mandibles quirked up in a smirk. "Sounds like the sort of thing I would do."

"No; it's more the sort of thing Kasumi would do." the Quarian disagreed. "But yeah... clever. I bet they'll get a shock out of that. Kind of feel sorry for whoever get's your old bed, though."

Thracius flinched; he hadn't thought about that. He could hardly tell the Matron; she'd know he was an eavesdropper(even if it was unintentional... most of the time). He'd be labeled a trouble-maker, then he'd _never_ get adopted! He'd be stuck here until he started service, he'd never get a real education, and... oh, _bother_ , why did life have to be so complicated?

"Oh... I guess I'll just... stay on my bed all day!" he realized. Why hadn't he thought of that _before_!? "Then they won't have the chance! Thanks for the idea, mister!"

He turned and practically ran back to his bed, on fire with his new plan. He checked the sheets and pillow carefully before climbing in his bed, and grabbing a book off the shelf next door. it didn't matter he couldn't read; he could pretend to read and that would be the perfect excuse to stay here. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ronda re-stash something behind her bed with a look of frustration, and he gave her a friendly wave.

Oh, it was good to be a listener!

Sadly, for all his cleverness, he failed to recognize what had really just happened, nor the fate he'd just written for himself.

For after the Turian boy left, Tali and Garrus exchanged a look.

"Do you think... maybe?" Garrus asked out loud. Tali nodded, still left bewildered by the conversation they'd just had.

"You know... I think he might be."

* * *

 _Just a plot bunny that refused to stay in it's hole. Read, review, and let me know what you think about this! Not sure if it will continue, but hey; I'm going to give it a chance._

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	2. Homeward Bound

**_Because loads of other authors do it, and people like an author who replies to reviews, I will be replying to reviews at the start of every chapter._**

 _Seabo76: Glad that you're hooked! I'm a big Garrus/Tali fan, too, to the point I couldn't bring myself to romance either of them in any of my playthroughs. Besides... Garrus is kind of best as my space bestie; he winds up that way no matter who you are._

 _DRWPJT: Thank you!^^ I do have plans to continue this, but it may be slow going. I kind of had to pluck up my courage to post this; the internet is a cruel, unforgiving place, particularly with today's political climate, and I'm a bit shy by nature when it comes to sharing stuff I make. Here's to hoping everything goes well!_

* * *

"Thracius?" He looked up, rubbing his eyes at the sound of the matron calling his name. He'd fallen asleep with the book in his lap. He looked to the west side of the hall; Garrus and his wife were long gone, it seemed. The matron was standing near his bed with pursed lips. She wasn't a kind woman, but she did what she could to keep them all alive, which was more than could be said for some parts of the galaxy; with the collapse of society had come the collapse of the foster system, and even though that had been two years ago, there were still too many children and not enough families who wanted them.

"Did I do something wrong?" he asked, gripping his book timidly. Was this about what he had said to that couple earlier? Had someone, for once, bothered to overhear him. _Oh, this is why I shouldn't_ talk _so much!_ He thought despairingly.

"No. The paperwork was still being finalized." she told him. He sat bolt upright. _Paperwork!?_ But... that had to mean... had he been...? "Pack what you have while we finish up, and come down to the main hall when you're done; someone decided they wanted you."

The book fell out of his hands, and he swore his mandibles fell off his face, he gawked so widely. He'd been _adopted_. Then, like a bolt of lightning had struck him, he dug beneath his pillow, clawing out the only picture he had of his birth family, and practically tore the drawers open to gather his few outfits and stuff them in the bag he had hidden under his bed. _I've been adopted!_ I _got adopted!_ Me _!_ The _me!_

He zipped up his bag, cast a triumphant look at Ronda and Will as they glared after him, and took off out of the ward. He had to remind himself to be slow on the stairs, and he made sure both feet were on a step before taking the next one. Even so, he was down to the main hall in the space of a few moments, and as he swung around near the entrance, he saw none other than the very same couple from earlier.

He ground to a halt, and subconsciously wondered if all the gawking he was doing today would make him sore tomorrow. _No way!_

"Yes... way. Okay, forget I said that, it sounded stupid." Garrus responded. Thracius felt his cheeks go hot; he hadn't _meant_ to speak out loud! While he looked at them and the matron, still bewildered and overwhelmed, the Quarian walked up to him, and crouched at his level.

"Thracius, my name's Tali, and this," she pointed at her husband, "is Garrus. We've been looking to adopt someone, and we were hoping it would be you. Would you like that? It's alright to say no."

For some reason, something about that last part didn't ring true. He stared into her mask, trying to discern a face, make out more than the glowing eyes glittering from the fog, but he could only see his own reflection. He looked up at Garrus... who looked away, reaching up to scratch at his scars, though it was less of a scratching motion than a 'please don't see this' motion. He'd seen people do that, sometimes. Kitirus had an embarrassing birthmark on his forearm, and made the same movements when he was being looked at. Was Garrus shy? Ashamed?

 _They were talking about kids being afraid of his scars._ Thracius realized quite suddenly why he was the one they'd chosen. He had seen horrible things during the war, things that were readily scary enough to burn into the mind of a three-year-old. Garrus' scars weren't even remotely frightening after seeing stuff like that; he still had nightmares sometimes. He thought perhaps the other kids either didn't remember as much as he did... or they didn't want a damaged dad. It was somewhat cruel, and quite rude, in his opinion. So in a way... it wasn't completely alright to say no, because it wasn't nice to hurt other people's feelings.

On the other side of the coin, an orphan would have to be crazy to say no to a family just because one member had gotten his face smashed in.

And Thracius liked to think he was quite far from crazy, indeed.

"Yes." he blurted. "Yes I'd like to go, I'd love to go, miss."

He'd have to get used to calling her 'mom' at some point, but for now he decided just to stick with being polite. The last thing he wanted to do was say something rude and ruin his chances.

"Thank you." Tali told him gratefully, resting one hand on his shoulder. Even through her suite, he could feel warmth, and _that_ felt right, like a good sign. "We'll do our best not to disappoint."

"You can expect a Hierarchy official within the month to legally finalize your custody." The matron said to Garrus. "In the meantime, I suggest you make sure your house is up to code for a young child; they'll snatch him up again if you two look like slobs in front of them."

Garrus' eyes narrowed, and Thracius wished the matron wasn't so rude and blunt all the time.

"I'll keep my room clean!" He insisted. "And I'll do all my chores, I promise!"

"It takes _more_ than a child's effort in these cases." the matron _tsk'_ ed, in that same 'you don't know what you're talking about, I'm older than you and so much more superior' voice she used every other time Thracius opened his mouth. "It's the parents who shoulder the responsibility, not you. Now, If you excuse me, I'll have your case logged by the end of the night, and I have to go re-assign several beds."

With that, the matron strode off, and Thracius reflected that this was, hopefully, in fact, the last time he would ever have to see her.

* * *

Thracius sat in the back of the transport with who would be, legally, his parents within the next month. If he behaved. If he was good. If he showed them he deserved to stay. He simply couldn't go back to the orphanage, he couldn't. Not when he'd finally be chosen.

"What planet do we live on?" he asked Garrus quietly, mindful of the other passengers. He had about that, and a million other questions trying to bust their way out of him, but he didn't think the other people on the transport would appreciate the outburst he wanted to have. And being a nuisance was _not_ the way to behave after being adopted.

"Rannoch." the older turian told him. His scarred mandible quirked up slightly. "Gotta nice view near the cliffs."

"You're going to have to be careful where you step, and don't wander too far." Tali added. _Rannoch._ That was the quarian home world. He was going to an entirely different _planet_ to live on!

"Will I see geth there?" he questioned eagerly.

"Maybe. We... don't have any geth compatriots." Tali's voice got quiet.

"Why not?" the question left his mouth before he could stop it, and he hoped feverishly he hadn't seemed arrogant.

"It's... it's just the way things are." he settled for nodding and being quiet as the transport docked with the ship they would be taking. He took a deep breath as he stood with all the other passengers, clutching his bag to his chest tightly. He'd been on a ship only once before, and he could barely remember it. The only reason he did was because it happened shortly after the Reapers attacked his birth planet. He couldn't remember the name of the planet, or the colony, though he thought it might begin with an 'I'.

As they filed out, and the crowd towered around them, he felt his gizzard squirm with fear. So many people... it would be easy to get lost in that sea, that forest of legs and bodies so much taller than he was(most of them; there were only a few other children that he could see). Instinctively, he reached up and grabbed Garrus' hand, seeking reassurance from the other turian. Garrus gave a start, a tiny jump of surprise, and looked down at Thracius, who in turned looked back up at him. There was an odd sort of... dare he say 'wonder' in his new father's eyes, as if he'd been granted some honor he hadn't been expecting.

Which was odd. Thracius was nervous. Nervous kids held their parent's hands, didn't they? That was what he was supposed to do, right? It was expected. So why was it so special all the sudden?

Maybe they were both in a little wonder. Perhaps, because, he couldn't ever remember holding his birth parent's hands. And here was a quiet first, in a tiny moment that ended as they were ushered by the flow of the crowd to where they were supposed to go. A quiet first for both sides.

* * *

"I can't believe we actually did it." Garrus murmured quietly as their transport ship traveled through the gulfs of space. After two years, the Relay system had finally been completely repaired. The Reapers themselves had laid the foundation for a faster recovery of the network, shortly before flying themselves into a black hole near the trailing edge of the Sagittarius-Carina Arm. To this day, nobody knew why, and nobody knew how, but Commander Shepard had somehow, in essence, programmed the Reapers to clean up, then die.

Two years, and he and Tali had, to use an Ashley term, 'tied the knot'. After several months, after Specter work and organizing and building on Rannoch, after talking, discussing, preparing, searching... they'd finally done it. They'd adopted a child. There were plenty of orphans left over from the war. The sad part was that, perhaps, most of them had family that yet lived, but could not be found. The resources just still weren't available.

They'd discussed it for some time. Garrus had some reluctance, with regards not just to the dangerous position of being a Specter(one that was a thorn in Aria's side to boot), but to his appearance as well. They'd decided they wanted a young child, and, sadly, most young children were disconcerted by his scars. And yet... here they were.

Thracius was fast asleep, his bag lax in one arm, curled up against Garrus' side. For the child, it was simply the time and place for a nap after a very long day, a necessary rest. For Garrus... it looked like one of those moments where you hardly dared to breath. Like when a wild bird decided to land in your hands, and you dared not to move out of fear for scaring it away.

"I keep wondering if we're even ready." Tali whispered, shaking her head. "What in the galaxy did we think made us qualified for this?"

"What in the galaxy made us think we were qualified to hunt down Saren five years ago?" Garrus asked back. "In fact, we saved the galaxy, so who gives varrens' a- _tail_ about what the galaxy thinks."

"I'm going to enjoy hearing you correct yourself all the time." Tali smirked behind her mask. He was working on it, yes. But, there was a reason humans said 'swear like a sailor', and sailors didn't have to be just on a water ship. There wasn't a single alien from the Normandy crew who hadn't picked up on human swears... well, unless you were Javik, who didn't understand the concept of cursing or why anyone bothered with it.

"I swear, if you buy me a swear jar..." he shook his head.

"Don't make me do it."she teased. "We're supposed to be all reputable and responsible now."

There was a buzz from Garrus' omnitool. His talons danced across the interface, and he transferred the call to his visor.

"Liara? Yeah, yeah we found one. We're on our way back now." he said, clearly answering some unheard question. "His name's Thracius; there's probably ten of those on this ship, knowing how common that name is... Gotcha. Thanks for the trouble."

He ended the call.

With being members of the Normandy crew, with him being a Specter, with her being a key diplomat between her people and the geth, with all the trouble that had followed them through the years, they couldn't afford to hold back on caution. There were too many enemies, too many risks, to not hide in plain sight.

To the records on the ships they took to Rannoch, they were ghosts. And as far as the crime lords of the Terminus Systems knew, there was no quiet little house on the Rannoch cliffsides. Some people would question as to whether a child would be safe in the hands of two people who were so at risk, but the truth of the matter was that, whether Thracius knew it or not, he was more than likely now the safest child in the galaxy.

And it was all thanks to the Shadow Broker.

* * *

 _Because Garrus would still be making trouble, and since we know Garrus, he probably makes some very powerful people very angry._

 _To establish a little more of this universe, I'll just quickly clearify the things that this galaxys' Shep did:_

 _Spacer/Sole Survivor MShep_

 _Sacrificed Kaiden on Virmire_

 _Wrex is alive, the genophage is cured_

 _Kasumi, Zaeed, and Javik were all recruited/encountered._

 _Thane, Mordin, Legion, Zaeed, and Jack died during the Reaper war._

 _Peace was brokered between the quarians and the geth._

 _Didn't really romance anybody_

 _Chose the control ending, but killed the Reapers by flying them into a black hole(he was a tiny bit of a paragade)_

 _I don't think Shepard could have agreed to controlling the Reapers for the rest of their life, not after hunting down the Illusive man, nor do I think a Shepard who saved the geth could agree to destroy all sythetics, so here we have the solution for all. Nobody ever said we couldn't spit in the catalyst's face AND chose the Control ending, hmm?_

 _So there we have it._

 _I'd like to give a shout out to Raven Studios and Jayfeattheris Awesome for their advice when it comes to chapter stockpiling and establishing a universe, respectively. I highly recommend their fics, Raven is an awesome long-time ME fanfiction author, who's interpretation of the universe is suppurb, and Jayfeatther, while her ME archive presence is smaller than her Destiny archive presence, does a great job of bringing out the characters of ME in what she does write._

 _Whew; to think, some people write authors notes_ longer _than this!_

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	3. House-ish Things

_Seabo76: He sure is! I was never satisfied by any of the canon endings, I think many will agree with me._

 _DRWPJT: I actually do a bit of writing ahead for this, so there might be an actual schedule. *shocked faces all around*_

* * *

It was a wild place, surrounded by the wild. Some people assumed the desert, that rocky planets in general tended to be lifeless, and Thracius had been one of them. Until today.

He still had his face pressed against the glass, watching as twisting trees grown from broken rocks dotted and sprang from Rannoch's surface down below. There were bushes, even an animal or two, and if he looked really hard, and really fast, he could even spot the occasional flower. But more intimidating was the sea.

From the safety of the skycar, he could see it below the cliffs, crashing and throwing itself against the rocks like a rabid rou'tan. He'd never seen an ocean before, and the dark water was both entrancing and terrifying. Though he was too young to know it, said terror was instinctive, seeing as his kind couldn't swim.

"And there we are." Thracius looked up at the sound of Garrus' voice. Out the front window was a house; _his_ house. That was where _he_ was going to live! Hopefully for the rest of his life...

It was humble-looking, or at least he thought it was, and it brought back some forgotten memory of the houses on his birth colony. It was tucked against a forest of the bare bones trees and bushes, and the sparse grass of the skycar's landing space was flattened by many takeoffs and and landings. It was flattened some more as they set down.

"You ready for this?" Tali asked him. He nodded eagerly.

"I was born ready!" he decided he'd been too quiet so far.

"I like your attitude." Garrus offered him a grin, and Thracius grinned back. He opened the door and hopped out, the grass crunching under his feet. he nearly jumped back in shock as the smell of the air hit him; it was tangy, almost salty, and crisp. He'd never smelled anything like it before.

"Tali, why's the air smell so weird?" he asked, looking up at her.

"That's the sea, Thracius." she told him. "I hope you don't mind, this place is a bit out of the way..."

"It's okay. I just have more places to do stuff in." he said. The path up to the house was gravely, rocky, and for some reason very satisfying to walk on. He dragged his feet through a patch of gravel, leaving deep ruts in it, before jumping hard on rock. If even the _rocks_ were entertaining here, he could get very used to this!

"Come on, you can make a mess later." Garrus urged. He was shifting his weight from foot to foot, the closest thing to impatience he'd seen the older turian express. But it didn't seem like the 'you're in trouble' impatience... yet. He scrambled to catch up with them, and cast looks back in the direction of the sea, curiosity trying to overwhelm him. He could explore later, but still...

"How much later?" he asked as the other turian made open the door.

"Later enough that the bruises those shuttle seats gave me will have disappeared." he answered. Thracius giggled. He liked his new dad; he was funny.

"Please, it wasn't that bad!" Tali scoffed.

"Please,"Garrus opened the door, "it was _agonizing_. Turian shuttle, you'd think the seats would be designed for turians, but _no_ , they're designed for some species we've never heard of yet, because I'm pretty sure _nobody_ would be comfortable in _those_ seats."

It was filled with... house-ish things. He'd expected something grand and wonderful that personified just how great the situation was, but no, the house was filled with house-ish things, things he had vague memories of but at the same time couldn't remember. It was...

It was _fascinating_.

"Whoa." it was all he could say. There was table in the center of the room, not at all like the dingy, long lunch tables of the orphanage. And there were _couches_ , real, actual _couches_. For _sitting in_. There was a carpet on the floor! He'd never been on a carpeted floor before! There were pictures on walls, most with his parents in them, but they were with people(and races) he'd never seen before. He could see the kitchen, with what he hoped were not-creaky-like-the-lunch-benches chairs, and-

They had a vid screen.

"You have a _vid screen_!?" he exclaimed, unable to stop the words from tumbling out of his mouth. He ran up to it; it's glass was black, blank, and he couldn't tell how it worked. he looked back at Tali and Garrus. "Is it broken?"

"Nope. Just turned off." Garrus assured him with a flare of his mandibles.

"Now, your room is just upstairs and-"

"I HAVE A _ROOM_!?" he hadn't meant to interrupt Tali, but he could barely remember ever having a room to himself before.

"Where did you think we were going to put you?" Garrus' eyes glinted. "The closet?"

"Whoa!" he whirled, and stormed up the stairs, taking them one at a time, barely paying heed to Tali's call of 'first on the left'. He burst into his room. _His_ room. They had obviously put thought into what a child would need; there were selves, a closet, and bins that were obviously meant to have toys stored in them once he had a considerable amount.

But his main focus, the crown jewel, the most glorious thing in this room... was the _bed_. It was _much_ bigger, and when he threw himself on it carelessly, having cast his bag to one side, it was _much_ softer than the ones at the orphanage.

"Oh cool!" was the muffled exclamation Tali and Garrus heard as they stopping in the doorway, greeted with the sight of Thracius' back end sticking out from under the bed. "You've got dust bunnies! _Real_ , _live_ dust bunnies!"

"We should probably clear those out." the older turian pointed out. Thracius backed out from under the bed to face his new father with a look of alarm and horror.

"What? No! They live under there!" he exclaimed. "If you move them the'll get eaten or something! That would be horrible!"

For a few moments the room was silent, and Thracius wondered if, perhaps, he'd overstepped his bounds, spoken out of turn. But then Garrus made a chuffing sound- a laugh if ever Thracius had heard one, and Tali was snickering. Thracius beamed, jumped up and ran at them throwing his arms around Tali's legs.

"Thank you thank you thank you thank you!" he burst. "You guys are awesome!"

Did it make no sense whatsoever that he'd only known them for, like a WHOLE DAY and already he loved them? All the sudden, life was looking up farther than he could even see! But he was here. He'd been adopted, someone had taken him home, and now it was time to take that home, and make something of it.

He might as well start by hugging his mom.

* * *

 _Okay, this guy is so sweet, I have a little trouble writing him, lol. Just as a warning; there will be timeskips, in here, plenty of timeskips. In fact, next chapter is going to be a timeskip by two months. In a few chapters, we'll move on ahead to maybe meeting the Normandy crew._

 _Sadly, it's not going to be under normal circumstances. But what can we expect, really? It's the Normandy crew!_

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	4. Learning

_seabo76: This is the Normandy crew we're talking about; they don't drop hammers. They drop bombs. Mostly f-bombs, but the real bombs are bombastic._

* * *

It had been a little over two months since Thracius had come home with Garrus and Tali. he'd learned much since then, about them, about himself, and about the oddities that seemed to lurk beneath the surface of their lives.

For instance, he'd learned if he left his parents in the same room alone for too long, he would wind up hearing the strangest of conversations. The banter was strange, and even though they'd become less prone to forgetting he was there, they still occasionally would, and Thracius would be left to wonder what in the word 'calibrating' meant, let alone what that had to do with 'vaporizer guns', 'thorians', or something called a 'mako'.

He himself had, finally, with the help of his father, mastered control of the vid screen. There weren't many channels, but the Aeronautics shows were interesting(Garrus had given him the most bewildered of looks when he said so out loud); he liked the looks of the ships and the planes, and, currently, models of such the like now made up a good deal of his arsenal of toys.

And then, there were the pictures; the ones he'd noticed his first day here. They were of his parent's 'old crew'; friends, more than friends, he'd been told, that had fought by their side during the Reaper War. It had eluded him completely, that day at the orphanage, that he'd just been adopted by two of the biggest heroes in the galaxy, but for some reason, it didn't matter to him as much as he thought it would.

Maybe it was because he'd known them as his new parents before he'd known them as war heroes, and even then, he wasn't sure. But the sight of his mother, his father, standing next to _the_ Commander Shepard... well, _everybody_ knew who Commander Shepard was.

Not to mention the aliens! Asari, _Humans_ (lots of them), Krogan of all things! At the far back of one picture was a freaking _prothean_ , who seemed to have tried his best to make as small a presence in the photo as possible(he was told by his parents _never_ to mention this individual when he got to school, that his existence was apparently a secret, and he had a feeling similar rules would be applied to certain others in the future). All in all, a very _big_ crew, with _a lot_ of names and faces he wanted desperately to memorize before he met them all. Oh, it would be _so embarrassing_ to meet the Normandy crew and _forget_ one of their names!

But alas, he'd been told he'd have to wait some time before the threat of making a fool of himself in front of his parent's friends ever presented itself. For this, Thracius was very happy. There were so many faces in those photos... he didn't even want to think about _all of them_ looking at him _all at once_! The thought made his gizzard quiver uneasily.

By all the skies, he was nervous enough _right now_ ; and this was just meeting his aunt and grandfather!

"Keelah, stop fidgeting! You're driving me crazy!" his mother's admonishment was not for him, but his father. Indeed, Garrus seemed far more nervous than he was, the older turian shifting his weight constantly, hopping almost imperceptibly from foot to foot. His mandibles went flickering wildly as the sound of an approaching skycar could be heard from outside.

"Oh, father don't yap! That'll be bad luck!" he certainly _looked_ like he was going to lose his lunch.

"More than bad luck; it's a ruined carpet." the older turian tried to joke, but his grin didn't reach his eyes. Thracius swallowed hard. What was making Garrus so nervous? _Surely, grandfather can't be_ scary _, can he?_ Grandfather's weren't _supposed_ to be scary; they were supposed to be grandfathers. So why did his dad look like he wanted to charge upstairs and hide?

"I'm sure it would wash out!" Thracius chirped, patting his father on the knee. Garrus reached down and griped his smaller hand with his own. There were scars, though not so nearly as severe as the ones on his face, criss-crossing his talons. Cuts and burns from broken gloves, and even a nasty one on his father's wrist where he supposed an omnitool had rather violently blown out, burning him. He'd asked about the latter; even as young as he was, Thracius knew it took _a lot_ to make an omni explode.

His father had simply said there was a 'bit of an accident', and swiftly dropped the subject. The prosthetic leg had caught him off guard, too; he hadn't even noticed it until later the night he'd arrived. After initially freaking out, and screaming at Tali that they needed to call an ambulance, he'd decided against asking how Garrus had lost his leg, for fear of seeming rude. He'd always thought people with fake legs would walk funny, but the only noticable difference in is new father's gait was that he had an odd habit of shifting his weight in an odd hop on occasion, as if he were testing to make sure his leg were still attatched.

There was a heavy knock at the door, and Thracius felt his father squeeze his hand, and, though Thracius didn't know it, hoped fervently that his own father wouldn't do anything too... Castis-like. Solana, he wasn't worried about. Castis? Oh, yes.

* * *

Vakarian Sr. hadn't expected this to ever happen. Garrus was wayward, in every way, shape and form. They'd forged tentative, fragile amends when his mother died(she'd threatened to buck the dirt off her grave and beat them over the heads until they made up if they didn't right then and there), but even afterwards he'd always had his doubts, his discomforts, his disapproving of Garrus' behavior.

He'd been furious, so, so furious when his son refused to comply, refused to go to Andromeda. But... _she_ had been sick. Dying. And as much as he hadn't wanted to be here when the Reapers poured through... he couldn't, simply could't, leave the love of his life behind to die alone. And her children wouldn't leave her either; when he'd suggested they apply for the Initiative, Garrus had been on Omega, and promptly ignored him(as per usual), and Solana had told him to go shove a grenade up his nose, because she wasn't running off to a new galaxy 'just because you and Garrus believe in fairy tales!'

She'd changed her tune somewhat after watching Palaven fall.

And then off Garrus went again, running with Specters, krogan, the like! And then he got married... to a _quarian_. He was honestly out of energy, exhausted at being surprised, shocked, or indignant about his son's choices. Certainly, when Garrus was born, this was not the life he'd imagined his son living. Tali seemed nice, but still...

And now, a child. As least they'd chosen a turian, but knowing Garrus and his odd tastes, Castis wasn't sure what to expect. And when he knocked on the door, he was even less sure. What was he supposed to _do_? He had little to no memories of his own grandfather, what was he supposed to do now that _he_ was one?

Oh, why did he have ever think to come here!?

To late, the door was open, and there was his son, mandibles flickering, the scars on his face no less horrible.

"Hey, dad." he said. The customary awkward stare... and thank goodness for Solana.

"Hello, varren-brain!" she chirped, pulling her older brother in for a hug. "Nice place you got here! If you like rocks a lot. You've got _a lot_ of rocks."

"Yes, they're wildly popular, you know." Garrus told her, moving back and gesturing for them to come inside. The home was surprisingly simple, all things considering. _As least there isn't any taxidermy..._ Part of him had expected to find some sort of grizzly trophy from the war hanging on one of the walls, but no; there were only pictures, of Rannoch, of Tali and Garrus, and of the Normandy crew. And... of a young turian.

And there he was, half-hiding behind the arm of a couch. He would grow up to be an item of jealousy, Castis could tell just by looking at him. He had a light, pale russet coloration that looked like it might lighten to more of a copper tone as he grew, and there were flecks of gray, which would shine out to silver as he hit adolescence, scattered across his facial scales, like someone had spilled water on him in some places. His eyes were a piercing amber color, and lowered in shyness.

This was his grandson. The realization was only clear now, like a bolt of lightning. Not a thought or expiriance he'd ever thought he would have, especially during the Reaper War.

"Hello." the boys greeted. Solana strode forwards, bold as she was, her mandibles parted in a wide grin.

"Hello, Thracius. I'm Solana, just call me Sol." she held out her hand, and he shook it shyly.

"Hi, aunt Sol." Tali chose that moment to come out into the living room. On Rannoch, she could live without her suit for short periods of time. Her glowing eyes raked down Catsis' body, as if assessing him, and her hair, yes, hair, was tied back in a loose ponytail.

"Solana, Castis. It's good to finally meet you." She nodded. They had been stuck on opposite sides of the galaxy during the wedding, the relays had still been under repair.

"Yes... very nice." was all he managed to say. He tried not to stare at the child, but his eyes were drawn to him.

"Great! It's nice to finally meet the woman who tamed my thrice-cursed brother. Just have to ask; how'd you do it?" Solana shook Tali's hand enthusiastically.

"I ground him when he breaks the rules." the quarian replied. "And I restrict his thanix privileges when he tries to sneak out... even if he does build a smaller version when nobody's looking."

"Hey, that was _one_ time!" Garrus protested. "Besides; it was mostly Javik's fault, he encouraged me."

"Dad, what's a thanix?" Thracius asked shyly.

"A really big gun on a ship." the smaller turian's eyes lit up at the word 'ship'.

"That reminds me!" Solana slid her bag to the floor and opened it, digging around in it. As she did so, Garrus shut the door.

"Dad, sit down, he doesn't bite." his son hissed through his teeth. Castis blinked rapidly. He did look rather awkward just standing around, didn't he? He stiffly made his way to the couch. It wasn't uncomfortable, but it felt strange.

"A Xerias X10-25!" Thracius suddenly cried out, snatching a model ship from Solana's hands. "It's only just started flying, it's not even been circu-culated into the fleets yet!"

" _Someone_ told me you liked ships." the female turian winked at her brother. "I figured you wouldn't have this one by now."

"I don't!" the child bounced up and down on his heels, waving the ship around as if making it fly. It was sleek and black, and his eyes shone as he looked back up at Solana. "Thank you! Thank you, thank you, thank you!"

Castis couldn't help a flash of envy. His daughter seemed to have won the child over in just an instance, but he could barely bring himself to say two words to the boy! What _did_ he say?

"What other ships do you have?" the female turian asked. Thracius set his new toy on the ground and stormed up the stairs, always putting both feet on a step before moving up.

"You know, I have a list of people I know who might be afraid of children; you weren't on it." Garrus said as soon as Thracius was out of earshot. "Just so you know, he's not like me. Yet. I mean, he hasn't blown up the kitchen yet, but I'm keeping an eye out..."

"By my gizzard, lets hope not." Castis shook his head. "That day was a nightmare."

"Dad, just _relax_." Solana urged. "And don't do that thing you do."

"Thing?" he asked, tipping one mandible and raising a brow plate.

"The thing where you ask if he knows how to shoot yet." Garrus said, waving one talon in a circular motion as if to say, 'duh, that thing'. "You asked all our cousins that... even if they were only three."

"We're turians; knowing how to shoot is in our blood." Castis reminded him."There's nothing wrong with learning early."

"Oh, there is. Trust me. There is." His eyes narrowed in subtle accusation. "The war's over; he'll learn when I think he's ready."

Castis could read between the lines; 'my kid, not yours, don't you even think about telling me how to raise him'. For all the Garrus-ish arrogance of it, Castis couldn't help but feel that smallest trickle of... what? Pride? Admiration that his son already seemed to be hefting and reserving some of the responsibilities of being a parent? The initiative he might be showing? _Well, at least I can stop worrying a little._

He'd thought Garrus would make a terrible parent, seeing as he never seemed to have grown up, what with the way he sometimes acted... he was like a big kid himself.

* * *

"So, what are you planning to do when work takes you out in the galaxy again?" Castis asked. He, Tali and Garrus were all on the upstairs balcony, out in the night sea air of Rannoch. Garrus could hear the waves crashing on the cliffs in the distance, and he stars shone so much more brightly overhead than they did in a city. He'd never noticed how dull stars were in cities until Tali had convinced him to live out here.

Solana was still inside with Thracius. He couldn't help but smirk; his sister was completely infatuated with her new 'aunt' role, and he was glad to know that at least _she_ seemed to adore the boy. Sometimes he couldn't help but wonder how the rest of the old crew would react when they finally met him... He shook his head. That wouldn't happen for a while; managing so many children may have worn Wrex out some, but not worn out enough that he and Grunt still didn't butt heads... literally. And there was a fair amount of head butting from Javik as well, actually.

 _I_ told _them a year on Tuchanka would change him, but_ no _, nobody ever listens to me..._ Even if he himself was partially guilty of occasional headbutts himself(much to the disapproval of Chakwas,who would sigh and warn he was going to knock his cybenetics out of alignment, he wouldn't stand by while Grunt, even a drunk Grunt, called him barefaced).

"Ahem. head out of the clouds, Garrus, I asked you a question." He felt his mandibles witch in frustration at the line he'd heard so many times as a child.

"As far as the council knows, I'm not even here; I'm gatecrashing merc operations in the Terminus Systems, posting as a pirate. Also, Javik and Samara are with me. Apparently. We've got a pilot named Vlad, and he _really_ likes whole grain and dill pickles." Garrus scratched as his scars, a habit that had carried on from when the bandages prevented him from scratching at the scabs when they itched. "I've even bought imports, to make it look realistic."

"And when they realize mercs aren't dropping dead?" Tali tried to point out for the millionth time.

"I'll tell them a moon got blown up. By Javik and Samara, because really, do you think that _wouldn't_ happen if those two went gatecrashing with me in the Terminus Systems?" He offered. "And so we've gotta lay low for a while, because when you're awesome and handsome like me, people hate you when your buddies blow up moons, because they're jealous you have friends that can do that."

His father sighed and buried his face in his hands. His father didn't like the company that inhabited the Normandy, it was no secret. But he was just going to have to deal with it; the crew were like a second family to Garrus, even if they were scattered across the galaxy save three days out of the year. Their faults, their odd quirks, and their exotic origins and all. Even the tea-guzzling kleptomaniac master thief, Kasumi.

" _I'll_ still be here when Garrus has to go back out. And the new school system will be up and running soon, he'll be part of the first wave of students." Tali assured Vakarian Sr. "Once that happens, we won't have to worry about him being alone in the house too long while I'm busy with the geth."

"But when he _is_ home alone? Do you know _exactly_ how much trouble young turians get up to?" Castis' mandibles twitched in amusement. "Remember that kitchen I mentioned? And he wasn't even looking for trouble."

"Go ahead and hang it over my head, old man." Garrus grumbled. "I stand by what I said that day; I was getting a head start on my career."

"I'll say." Tali commented.

"Son, I'm going to tell you what your mother told me when you were Thracius' age and needed an outlet. By my gizzard, I wish I'd listened to her, because it would have at least taught you how to take initiative." Castis shook his head.

"And... what did she tell you?" he asked cautiously.

"Get the boy a rou'tan." Garrus searched his eyes for any hint of a joke, but the cold steel look said he plainly wasn't kidding; he was being dead serious. Rou'tan were similar to earth's dogs, but were native to Palaven, usually black and skeletal-looking. Most people thought they looked like the stuff of nightmares, but they were actually quite docile. And Garrus, of all people, knew how not to judge a book by it's cover... or a hideous dog-thing by the way it looked like... well, a hideous dog-thing. They were actually quite popular, and becoming more so now that quarians could actually keep pets now(rou'tan on a flotilla ship had generally been considered a bad idea).

"Get him a rou'tan?" Garrus echoed. _Leave it to mom..._ it sounded exactly like the sort of advice she would give. His mother had loved animals. 'Good for the spirits!' she would say, 'Living and dead!'

"Yup. Get him a rou'tan." Castis looked out past the cliffs, eyes scanning. "Not too shabby a venue you chose."

"Yeah. But we didn't just chose it for the venue, you know." Tali agreed. Garrus' father nodded.

"I had a feeling, after we went through d-con that something was off about the roundabout path we were given." It was a way of saying 'I've seen the precautions you've taken.' "This have anything to do with _that_ incident?"

He nodded down at Garrus' leg. He winced.

"I've told you before, it was just a bit of an accident." Well, it was partially true; he hadn't been watching where he was stepping, and Javik had been a bit late with that barrier, though through no fault of his own; he _had_ been a bit overextended by that point. "Besides; anyone we made angry doing that, we probably killed them, or they think we died in the blast."

That was what he kept telling himself. What they all kept telling themselves. But the truth was in the precautions; he wasn't sure that would be the end of it. And then he and tali decided to have a kid... how could they take that chance? How? It was far too risky. And though his many forays into the terminus Systems since then had yielded little to no evidence, he couldn't help but feel that day was just the tip of the iceberg, to use a human term.

His father gave a thoughtful hum. "Well, I'll get the truth of it out of you someday." He had never really told anyone the full story. There were too many personal ghosts involved with the tale, and not just his own. The kind of ghosts you kept your mouth shut about unless given express permission by the hauntee to mention them.

"Eh, the truth's overrated and dramatic." Dramatic, certainly. And explosive, of course. One does not simply strand two or more members of the Normandy crew on a small moon and expect there to be peace. That poor planet the Normandy had crashed on after the Crucible fired had certainly learned that lesson the hard way...

"I expect nothing less." Castis said. Backed away from the railing. "Sol and I aught to get settled at the hotel. This is a business trip, after all."

 _Yeah, tricking a cartel smuggling geth tech counts as business these days..._ But it was an unfortunate part of the job description. His father had dealt with this group before, and he needed his help now. And these days, geth tech could also be geth parts, and since the geth were now fully-functioning sentient beings with emotions... well, not a lot of people wanted to call it murder or organ harvesting since they were synthetics, but that was what it was in essence, and it had bothered Tali greatly. His father paused in the doorway.

"For what it's worth... he's a good kid. You chose a good kid." with that he was gone. Garrus let out a heavy breath of air. The entire visit was a little nerv-racking. This was his father, and he'd been afraid of what might be said about and to Thracius. When the older turian had actually talked to the child, he'd been relieve the conversation hadn't been as bad as he'd imagined it. At least he wouldn't have to worry about any off conversations for the next day, at least...

"By my gizzard, I think I just _relaxed_!" this earned a huff of laughter from Tali.

* * *

 _Yeah, Castis is going to be awkward! And yeah, i blasted Garrus' leg off. I always thought the Normandy crew got away a bit_ too _unscathed in their canon epilogues..._

 _Come on, guys, lets get some reviews going here! I need inspiration! I spend most of my time playing Destiny 2 because I'm thirsting for feedback; at least Lord Shaxx doesn't hold out on his opinions..._

 _"WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU CAN'T CONCENTRATE WHEN I'M YELLING!? CALM DOWN!"_

 _"_ _I would tear out a Vex heart with my teeth, I would sear the Cabal with my burning light, challenge the Kells to personal combat and scatter them. I'd... I've been watching too many Crucible matches."_

 _"Who said Warlocks were better with books than with guns? ...Okay, it was me. But rage is a GREAT motivator!"_

 _"Do you like it better when Lord Saladin oversees these matches? Do I look like I care? Get back in there!"_

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	5. Bandanna Rule

_DRWPJT: *bows* Thank you! I actually got a lot of good advice from another author about setting worlds up, I'm trying to follow it._

 _seabo76: Trouble follows this crew like fleas on a squirrel, I tell you. Explosion aplenty, my friend._

 _booker de wit: I wrote at the bottom of like, chapter two, the things Shepard did. And believe it or not, it is possible to play through this game without romancing anyone. Say what you will about how boring that would be, but I'm one of those people who avoids sex scenes at all costs._

* * *

"Don't forget, I'll be around at one, be outside by then." Tali rattled off. "And be nice. To everyone. And if someone tries to bully you, you-"

"Tell them I've got an asari Justicar aunt and she'll eat them if they hurt me?" Thracius guessed, beaming up at her hopefully. From upstairs, he heard Garrus bark a laugh. His mother buried her face in one hand, but Thracius could see her smiling.

"Keelah, please have mercy on your teachers, Thracius! They might not be able to handle all your ideas!" his mother shook her head. She gave a sudden start. "Oh, who fed Ragmore?"

About a month after his aunt and grandfather had visited, he'd been surprised with the delight-and responsibility-of naming a rou'tan cub. His parents seemed convinced that having a pet would complete their little family, and so far, the past two months of training the christened Ragmore was proving to be both fun...

There was a loud crash and a series of yips from the kitchen.

And exhausting.

"I got the yipper covered." Garrus strode down the stairs, intimidating in a way Thracius had never seen him before. He was wearing full heavy armor, for today was the day he had to go back to work. Or, what his father liked to call it, 'gatecrashing criminals'. "I'll put him in his box and top off his bowls before I leave."

"Got your lunch?" his mother asked.

"Oh, you made me lunch?" his father's mandibles gave a flick of pleasure.

"No, stupid, I was talking to Thracius!"

"Awww."

"Why doesn't dad get lunch?"

"Because he's probably got a hoard of snack on his ship already. The last thing he needs is more food." the quarian poked her husband in the stomach.

"Are you calling me fat!?" he gasped.

"That just means there's more of the legend to love." she looped her arms around his neck and kissed him. Thracius made a face.

"Ew, gross!" he turned and ran for the door. "I'm too young for all this romance thingys!"

"Aw, well, are you too young for _this_!?" Thracius squealed as his father ran and scooped him up from behind. Armored talons ticked his stomach, and he laughed and yelled.

"Ah, gerroff!"

"You too _old_ for tickling?"

"Yes, ye-es! Stop!"

"You think you're too old for tickling?"

"I'm gon-na laugh my laugh bo-x out, you dri-py gi-zzard! MOM!"

"Keelah, we're going to be late!" right on que, his mother scooped up his jacket and backpack off the table. "Garrus, car! I am _not_ going down in history as the only late family on the first day of school in centuries on this planet!"

"By Rags, love you!" he called over his father's shoulder, still feeling the ache in his gizzard from all that laughing, and the fact he didn't know when he would see his father again. He could only take consolation in that his dad was a hero, who fought all the bad guys out there in the galaxy.

"Got your bandanna?" his father demanded as he helped him into the skycar.

"Yup!" he chirruped. His parents had an odd rule; always carry a bandanna when you went out in public. You didn't have to wear it, you just had to have one on you. There was a whole bag of bandannas in the bathroom ready for usage. "You got yours?"

His father raised his hand, showing off the patterned black fabric tied around his wrist. "Always. You do good, I'll see you in a few weeks."

They did one last hug. His parents did their gross kissy thing again, and then all too soon the skycar was off. He watched as his father turned into a tiny dot on the ground, and then lost sight of him completely. He knew it was a bit too childish; he'd known the day would come when Garrus would have to go back to doing Specter work, but he spent a few quiet minutes resisting the urge to cry.

Then the sheer terror of facing his first day of school kicked in, and he had to start trying to make himself brave again. _First day of school. Dad is leaving. What could possibly go wrong?_

"Mom, how many other turians go to the school?" he asked. He didn't want to be the only one there. Surely, he couldn't be the only one who went there, right?

"I don't know the numbers, but there might be a few." she shrugged. "I highly doubt you'll be the only one; Rannoch was one of the only safe havens towards the end of the war, I know that plenty of people from other species decided to stay afterwards. There'll be other turians; you'll see."

Thracius nodded worriedly, tapping his talons on his lap. He really _hoped_ she was right. He knew Tali was really smart, but this time he _really_ hoped she wasn't wrong.

* * *

It was a rule of Commander Shepard's mother. Consequently, he had passed it to a good portion of the crew, even the ones who thought it was ridiculous. Oh, it had been hilarious watching him getting people like Jack, Zaeed, and Wrex trying to follow the rule. When anyone new was introduced to the rule, Shepard having dropped the colored fabric into their hand, responses were usually in the realm of 'what's this rubbish?'

But eventually, even the most reluctant, most stubborn of people would begin to do as they were told... even if the got hot pink. Nobody wanted to wind up carrying hot pink. Hot pink was not only classified as 'not classy', nor did it even match the armor of anyone who'd ever set foot on the Normandy, it was neither useful in hiding from the enemy if your armor lacked pockets, painting a bright, hot pink target on you, it was embarrassing if it did peak out of said pockets, but most of all, hot pink was taboo.

If Shepard stuck you with hot pink, it meant you were gonna get shot, and it was going to hurt like hell.

That being so, by the end of the war they'll all been inducted into a reluctant habit that became tantamount to instinct. If you were leaving the ship, you took your designated bandanna, or snagged one from the bucket in the armory.

Such was the nature of what had become known to the Normandy crew as 'the bandanna rule'. It was one of those soldier habits that stuck with you, even past the war, hence why Garrus still carried a bandanna. Human fashion crazes were weird, it was generally agreed, but he secretly admitted he'd come to like the bandanna thingy. For one thing, it drew attention away from his face; he was by no means vain, but if he was sporting a weird accessory, there was more likelihood they would pay more attention to his wrist than his scars.

The basis of the bandanna rule, was that bandannas were very, very useful. They could be applied as a field tourniquet if medigel ran low, they could be used to tie things together, they could be pulled over your mouth to keep out contaminants if you were stuck without a helmet or your filters stopped working, and-for the human females-they were more durable then headbands or hair ties for keeping your hair back. Garrus usually wore his over his omnitool to provide just a tiny layer of extra protection; anything to help prevent a repeat incident.

To Shepard, bandannas had been a mainstay. Garrus would never forget the moment before they dropped in the Mako for his first ground mission with the Normandy crew, when Commander Shepard, the first human Specter, walked up to him with an N7-red bandanna tied around his bicep, and shoved a bright colbat scrap of fabric into his talons.

"Alright, Detective Vakarian; first rule about working with me, is _always carry your damn bandanna_. I don't care if it makes you look girly. Carry the bandanna, or don't come ground side. Those things are lifesavers."

Shepard been right in the end; it was one of those very bandannas that had been used to stop the bleeding when he lost his leg. In the end, when infection had turned it into just a piece of rotten flesh he'd been dragging around with him, there had come a point where it became so agonizing he'd chopped it off himself, both to end the pain and make it easier to walk; using a wall to replace a lost leg, had been easier than tripping over a carcass of a leg the whole journey. Thank goodness for bandannas.

And thus was why Garrus had passed the tradition on, to Thracius.

As he sat in in the boy's room, contemplating on passing another thing on, he couldn't help but think about how much his life had changed in the last half year. Tali had wanted to try 'an experiment in setting down'. In laying down roots. Oh, it had been successful, alright. Maybe a little too successful. He felt like something in his chest might break.

Before... well, he'd just tell Tali he'd be back in time to give her a break from yammering on with politicians, and trying to explain metaphors to a machine race that took everything literally. The geth still had trouble with that... that, and the fact all of them had an almost surreal knowledge of how to be a role play game genius. Tali was still trying to pry out answers regarding that detail.

Now? Now... dammit, half a year with the boy, and he was already attached. Now his head was filled with what-ifs. Like... what if he didn't come back from the next mission? What if Thracius got adopted, only for one parent to die in bullet fire? What if he didn't live long enough to see what Rannoch's markings looked like on his son? What if he never got to introduce Thracius to Liara, or Kasumi, or the any of the Normandy crew? What if Tali was left alone, his best friend and the love of his life at the same time, to raise this little kid who loved ships and named his rou'tan Ragmore? What if six months of happy living were the only memories Thracius would ever have of him?

Garrus took a deep breath and buried his face in his talons. _Damn; fatherhood's turned me into a deep thinker._ For a few moments, he let himself look at all the what-ifs, and he let himself feel then, and he let himself feel afraid to die. Then, the cast aside the feelings with cold logic; if he truly loved this child, he would be _stronger_ , not more afraid. There were threats in this galaxy, true evil, men as soulless as Reapers who would tear the boy apart and laugh if they got their claws on him, and it was he, Garrus, who had sworn an oath to protect the galaxy, and by extension Thracius, from these threats.

He would fight like an animal to make sure they never got close. But meanwhile, he was reluctant to leave his son-yes, he now had a _son_ , oh how strange it was-to go traipsing around the galaxy with his friends, causing big, lovely explosions, and taking everything that wasn't bolted along the way(because Kasumi tagged along frequently, and she was a complete kleptomaniac, it was easy to see why she'd gone into thievery).

Yet as reluctant as he was... he couldn't help the stupid grin that rose on his face as he heard the sound of a shuttle approaching outside. As much as he didn't want to leave, deep down, he really missed the crew. He turned the OSD around in his talons. He didn't really share with anyone, save Tali, what he listened to on his visor. Who wanted to admit their favorite band was centuries dead and from another species? But he couldn't help but want to share some of it with Thracius.

No son of his was going to grow up without ever hearing Southern Nights. He set the OSD on the side table, and got to his feet, heaving a sigh as he prepared to get made fun of, and make fun in return. He froze as a flurry of high-pitched baying came from downstairs, and he muttered a swear; he'd forgotten to put Ragmore in his box.

"Would it _kill you_ to shut up, Rags?" he shouted as he stomped down the stairs.

"What the hell kind of animal are you wrestling in there, Garrus!?" Ashley's muffled voice came from outside.

"The kind that I'll have to live with for the next ten years, at least!" he called back. The banter came so easily, oh how he'd missed it! He picked up Ragmore, tucked him under one arm, and hissed at him to shut up before opening the door. Ashley opened her mouth to say something, but stopped short. Javik just stared, as did Kasumi.

"What?" he asked.

"That." Javik pointed at Rags, who would look like, to most, like some tiny little beast straight out of hell... which he acted like sometimes.

"What about him?" Garrus looked down at Ragmore. he was a perfectly normal rou'tan, he didn't see anything wrong with him.

"It's a gross dog thing, Garrus. What are you doing with a gross dog thing in your house?" Ashley demanded, crossing her arms.

"Gross! he's adorable! Garrus!' Kasumi squealed, pushing her way to the front and practically snatching Ragmore out of his arms. "You were right Ashley; he _is_ going domestic!"

"What!? Domestic!?" he was _not_!

"You got the kid, you got the dog," the human counted off on her fingers,"And you got your little house in the middle of the woods. face it; you're going domestic."

"Javik, are we doing dirty pirates this time?" he asked.

"Yes; in the traverse."

"Okay, Ash; let's go find some dirty pirates, and I'll show you _exactly_ how domestic I am."

* * *

 _Bonus points to anyone who can tell me which Kathryn Lasky series Ragmore's name comes from. I couldn't help myself, it just kind of sounded catchy. If I ever get a dog, his name is going to be Ragmore. As for what a rou'tan looks like... think Threshal from harry potter, but it's a gross dog thing, as Ashley puts it._

 _Let me know what you guys thought about the Normandy banter, and if you want to see the gang fight some dirty pirates on the side! As for the the lame shortness of this chapter..._

 _Over the weekend, heaven gained 26 new members. A gunman walked into a church, and opened fire on the unarmed people who came that morning expecting to go to mass, go home, and keep living a life of faith. As a Catholic, I find it very disconcerting whenever any variant of my religious community suffers something like this, and it disconcerts me greatly. I spent all yesterday trying to make this chapter longer, but in the end, my heart just wasn't in it. the next one will hopefully make up for it, I plan on making it properly long, and full of shenanigans._

 _Eternal rest grant unto them, oh Lord, let perpetual light shine upon them, and may they rest in peace. Amen._

 _ **If you have any complaints about me putting a prayer in my authors note, or ill feelings about me or my religion, please kindly put them in a PM addressed to me and not in the reviews box** ; I don't want any other Catholic readers clicking reviews expecting to get feedback from other people about the quality of my work, only to get a face full of hate. That kind of thing ruins peoples days, and i think we've had enough ruining for the week, thank you. If it bothers you that much, you don't have to keep reading my stuff._

 _Fare Thee Well, and God Bless!_


	6. Dynamic

**_Codex: :The Terminus War: Early_** ** _Skirmishes_**

 _ **"As the last person who remembers and knows the true history behind the Terminus War, I've decided that, in the twilight of my life, there is no longer a need for secrets. So much of what I'm about to carve into history was a secret back then; secrets ranging from widely-known, to absolutely classified. But eight centuries is a long time, and I think I owe it to certain memories to tell the tale."**_

 _ **"It started in earnest around early 2189, or late 2188; I can't remember which, time gets so blurred that far back. But it had been over two years since the end of the Reaper War, and just under that time since Garrus Vakarian's first encounter with the Horizon Syndicate(events which will be detailed in a later entry). After adopting a young turian, who many would come to know as Thracius Vakarian Vas Rannoch, he decided it was time to hunt down the Syndicate for answers as to their purpose."**_

 _ **"He proceeded to do so with a small team, included among them Specter Ashley Williams-later Vega, after she married-future N7 Marine James Vega, then-wanted master thief Kasumi Goto(who was trying to turn over a new leaf), and Javik, the last prothean, who Garrus considered a close friend in later years despite his... rather difficult personality."**_

 _ **"Garrus said he wanted to make the galaxy a safer place for his son. For every son. For every child."**_

 _ **"My name is Liara T'Soni, and I'm sorry to say that his missions weren't as successful as he'd hoped they would be."**_

* * *

"I... cannot believe I let you talk me into this, turian."

"Hey, it's not that bad! Besides, whatever happened to 'I want to see how unconventional infiltration works in this cycle!'"

"'Not that bad?' We are dangling _upside down_ , over a _pit_ , and _I_ am stuck chained to _you_!" Javik snapped, bitter he couldn't glare the sniper in the eyes. "Explain to me why I follow you?"

"You know, every time I think we've got this whole 'hero-sidekick' dynamic pretty well-established, you go and say something like that, and break my heart." Garrus drawled. He grinned, knowing exactly the thought that would disgust his prothean friend. "Besides, it could be worse; you could be chained to Feron."

"We could be dangling over a vat of Thresher Maw acid." Ashley added in her two pieces from where she and Kasumi were in a similar predicament(the latter of whom was absolutely thrilled at being captured for the first time ever, it was an entirely new experience for her).

"Filled with sharks using chainsaws!" the thief chirped.

"Truly, these mercenaries are masters of torture." Javik commented with a deep breath. His top set of eyes closed tightly as if he were trying to ward off a headache. "The only thing worse than listening to your backsass is feeling it _infect_ me as you think of it."

"Oh, you poor mind reader." Garrus shot back.

"Hey, I wouldn't wanna be stuck listening to your headspace either, Vakarian!" Ashley called. "Javik, is half of what he thinks _really_ sarcastic comments and undressing Tali?"

"Don't tempt me."

"Do not tempt him, human."

"Besides it's not like you don't do the same thing to James-"

There was a sudden crash, and what Javik and Garrus would both later deny was a girly scream, as the two suddenly dropped what had to be a good hundred feet before the chain went taut. When it stopped, they found themselves facing an Incredibly Ugly Human.

"You two are going to be entirely honest with me." He sneered. "Or you will pay with your-"

"Your nose looks like someone slammed a door in your face-"

"Then proceeded to hit it with a brick." Javik continued as Garrus was spun facing the other way. Silently he cursed himself for going along with it.

"Then ran it over with a steamroller-boy this is a lot of spinning. Trying-oh, trying not to yap over here..."

"Silence!" The human yelled.

"Hey, you said to be honest, and-IS THAT A PINEAPPLE!?" Garrus cut off mid-sentence as he cought sight of a supply cache. He desperately tried to look at it again as he spun. "Javik, is that a pineapple?"

"We are _not_ throwing it at them." the prothean muttered. "That was a ludicrus plan three years ago; it is still one now. No... no, do not think about _that_."

"Thinking about what?" The human demanded.

"Tearing you a new one." Garrus said. "And-are your serious? This spinning- okay, I _swear_ we aren't doing this on purpose!"

"That is _completely_ irrelevant." their captor pulled a sneer that Javik returned in force. "What does that have to do with anything?

"It's the principle of the matter; you don't talk to your enemies when your back is facing them." Garrus said, before quietly adding. "Are you reading what I'm thinking?"

"That is the only sensible thing you have said all day." the prothean replied out loud before he was no longer facing the Incredibly Ugly Human. "And unfortunatly, I have little choice. Need I remind you that plan nearly killed both of us?"

"Okay, so what else do you want me to be honest about? Because to be honest... ugh... I-wow, I'm really going to yap right now, ugh..." Garrus groaned. "Sorry, got this whole, motion sickness thing after my face got blown up. I keep telling my doctor it's the cybernetics, but she won't beleive me-"

"SHUT UP!" the Incredibly Ugly Human screamed, his face turning beat red and twisting with anger and disbelief. "How in the galaxy did you IDIOTS even get HALFWAY into my base!?"

"Like this." the scarred turian replied. The guards outside the door rushed in as the scream split the air and the sound of biotics firing off tore through the area, but were only in time to get bludgeoned by what was ostensibly Garrus' prosthetic leg.

"You're crazy." the human whispered with horror... as he dangled upside-down with his DC comics briefs showing. Garrus stood leaning against a rock, tossing the pineapple from one talon to the other. "You're both insane!"

"Us?" the turian pointed to himself and then at Javik... who was still beating one of the guards with the leg. "Javik, pretty sure he's unconscious. No, no, we aren't insane; _I_ support Marvel. DC is trash, it was dead before hitting galactic market. You're the one with issues. Let me guess... you weren't hugged enough as a chi- WOULD YOU PLEASE RETURN MY LEG IN ONE PIECE!? It was made for walking, not beating on plasteel for an hour!"

"He is a krogan!" the Normandy's most notorious 'exotic' resident reasoned, pausing. He hit the guard again when he groaned. "I was double-checking."

"'Double-checking'? Okay, you _were_ chained to me for too long, you're starting to talk like me." This was met by a massive eye roll combined with a 'don't make me space you' look.

"What is _wrong_ with you people?"

"I am the last of my species, and this hideous primitive with an immature disposition, is unfortunatly one of the few people I trust with my life. I was also chained to him for six hours, which is _your fault_. Fool."

"I took a missile to the face, got my leg blown off, and my five-year-old has better manners than I do. I'm also stuck with _that_ guy as a sidekick."

"I am not your 'sidekick'." the prothean waved the leg around, as if threatening to throw it into the pit.

"Denial!" came a call from far above. "You're totally his sidekick right now!"

"Would you two heros hurry it up and GET US FREAKING DOWN FROM HERE!?"

"WHATEVER!" Garrus called back. He reguarded the pineapple. "Well, lets chain up the crazy and ditch this place. I'll que up the Alliance, let them know they've got a mass-murdering DC fan waiting for them. Toss me my leg will you?"

"DROP THE LEG!" another guard jumped through the doorway, bringing his pistol to bear on Javik. "DROP THE DAMN LEG AND-"

There was a loud _thunck_ as the pineapple hit him square in the face. Garrus brushed his hands off. "Well, I can cross that off my bucket list. Javik, I give to you a _completely_ unconventional infiltration. Your welcome."

"Next time we get captured, I am standing as far away from you as possible when we are aprehended." he tossed the leg in Garrus' direction, earning the stink eye from the turian, before ripping a panel off a control console. "I am tired of having my thoughts infected by your immaturity."

"Well, I think you're _better_ when you're influenced by me; way more fun." he crouched down, and pulled his mandibles back in distaste as he inspected his leg for major damage. _Now I remember why that was a bad plan..._ Oh, well; this model had been sticking at the ankle, anyway.

* * *

Thracius took a deep breath. He tapped his talons on his desk. He shifted in his seat. The teacher, a haggard-looking quarian woman, was ignoring him until class started. He was ten minutes early; he knew it would be more... _normal_ , if he went out and played with the other kids until the time passed, but he was too afraid of being late.

And too afraid of all the crowds of children, chattering, calling for his attention, and goodness forbid if one of them asked 'can I be your friend'! He didn't think he would know what to say! Back at the orphanage, he'd had few, if any, friends. Most of the kids there had been nasty to one another, too.

It hadn't been a happy place, and it had been so crowded, and he hated being around _so many_ people, even people his own age. There was just something.. daunting, suffocating about crowds. And right now, the hallways were _definitely_ crowded, and he had no desire to get trampled on.

 _It'd be a HORRIBLE thing to get squished my first day of school..._ then came the mental image of Tali driving a pancake-d Thracius home, and everything was terrible from then on out, because if he was a pancake, he couldn't eat any more dextro pancakes, because it would be cannibalism!

The door to the room opened, and a nervous-looking quarian boy stepped in, herded by what seemed to be his mother; a cranky-looking lady who looked like she'd eaten something sour, and her eyes seemed to glow just the tiniest bit red, like a monster. He could easily imagine her living in his bedroom closet...

"Ki'Rah?"she inquired sourly. The teacher looked up at her and nodded. The woman looked back at her son, and gave him a bit of a forceful shove into the room. He was skinny, paler than any quarian Thracius had ever seen, and looked just as cranky as his mother.

"Do remember to behave yourself!" the woman warned before backing out of the room. The new boy stuck his tongue out at where she'd disappeared, and, to Thracius' horror, stomped over, and took the seat next to him.

"'Do remember to behave yourself!'" he mocked in a nasal voice, quiet enough that the teacher couldn't overhear. "Bosh'tet."

Thracius looked at him, mortified. _Who talks that way about their own mother!? And he used the 'B' word!_ His parents had a swear jar. They said at the end of the year, he could use the money himself, to buy something of his very own, unless he started to repeat what he heard.

Right now, the swear jar was kind of full.

"So, your mom put you in here, too?" the kid asked, and it took Thracius a moment to realized he was being adressed.

"Um, y-n-no. I, um, I came in here myself." he wanted to sink into the floor. "My mom dropped me off."

"Lucky. Mine thinks I'll make a friend by accident and suddenly be happy." the quarian child adopted a sneer that didn't look right on a face his age. "Ancestors forbid _that_ ever happening."

"Oh." was all he could say. _His mother doesn't sound very nice._

"Wh-what's your dad like?" he asked, trying to steer the topic away from mothers.

"Suuuuper dead. During the Reaper war." he waved his hands as if to indicate exactly how dead his father, was, and Thracius felt a little sick. "Yours?"

"I'm adopted." he blurted. "I don't remember my old dad. My new one's cool, though. He's funny."

"Hmm. 'Funny'." the other child pondered. "Kal."

"Huh?"

"Name's Kal. Kal'Torin."

"I-I'm Thracius. Thracius Vakarian."

"NO WAY! Like, Garrus Vakarian? THAT Vakarian!?" the young turian flinched under the outburst as Kal practically jumped onto his desk. "You got adopted by Garrus-flipping-Vakarian!? HOW!?"

This was a problem he hadn't thought of. He'd known his parents were war heroes... but he never realized they were _those_ kinds of heroes, the ones whos names were known by _everyone_.

"I-I just g-got lucky, I guess..." he didn't know what else to say, and settled for sinking into his seat. Kal sat down with a huff.

"Talk about privileged..." And that was when Thracius knew, it was going to be a very long first day of school.

* * *

And boy, was he right. When the teacher called his name for roll call, Thracius wanted nothing more than for a black hole to come and eat him, as _every single eye in the room_ turned his way.

By lunch, every single kid in Kindergarten knew who's son he was. They were like, literally crushing each other to try and get close to him, and he couldn't eat his lunch.

By first recess, he felt like crying. One kid called him out on this, and though he remembered his conversation with his parents earlier that morning, he had the feeling that mentioning his aunt Samara was a Justicar would only make things worse. So, he went over to the swings... where several kids promptly followed him. He'd never felt so frustrated and so desperate for privacy in his entire life.

"You think you're too good for us?" it was another kid his age. Son of an admiral, in the same classroom as Thracius. Rin-something. His face was long, handsome, and demanding, and it had the angriest look Thracius had ever seen on a fellow child.

"Wh-what?" he stuttered.

"You think you're too good for the rest of us, don't you? Just 'cuz you got adopted by Garrus!" Rin accused. Upset and confused, Thracius told him to drink thresher maw spit, and ran away.

During second recess, he ran back behind the building to hide, his toy Xerias clutched close to his chest as he tried not to cry. _I hate school!_

"I wanna go home..." he whimpered, stroking the smooth lines of the tiny ship.

"Why? It's great here!" he jumped slightly at the sound of Kal's voice. He hadn't noticed the other kid follow him.

"No, it's not!" Thracius shouted. "I hate it, nobody will leave me alone, a-and I hate crowds, and they all think I'm 'privletege-ed' or something like that, and Rin'Gerrel is a jerk, and I couldn't eat 'cuz everyone was crowding me, and they're making fun of me 'cuz I'm adopted, and-and... THE TEACHER SMELLS LIKE ARMPITS!"

Kal burst into howling laughter. "ARMPITS!"

"It's true! She came to my desk, and she smelled like armpits!" Thracius insisted, still sniffling.

"You gots it bad? While she was leaning down talk'n to you, she stuck her butt in my face!" Kal's eyes widened dramatically. "It smelled like farts!"

"What were you expecting? It's a butt." They laughed a little more, until Kal asked about his toy ship.

"It's a Xerias X10-25, the most advanced fighter in the turian military!" he told him, eyes shining.

"Looking kinda smallish." Kal scratched his head a little.

" _Duh_ , it's just a toy! The real one's way bigger." Thracius rolled his eyes. "My Auntie Sol gave me this. She's awesome."

"You have an _aunt_?" the quarian's eyes widened again. "Whoa. I don't have any aunts. You got an uncle, too?"

"No. Not really. But... kinda, I guess?" Thracius drew his mandibles in a thoughtful look. "My parents have got all these pictures hung up around the house of all their friends. None of them are turians, or quarians, but mom says they're family anyway... sooo... I guess they're adopted, too, or something? Like, adopted to be brothers and sisters and whatnot, 'cuz then how else can a krogan be my uncle?"

"Your uncle's a _krogan_!?" Kal's eyes widened again. "Dude! You've got it made!"

"Huh?"

"That just means you got it all! I'd _kill_ to have a krogan for an uncle!"

"Really?"

"Well, yeah, _duh_! They breed super fast, so I would never run out of cousins! I'd have some my age, and always some younger than me, so I could teach the younger ones how to play video games and throw rocks at rodents, and the older ones would teach me how to shoot stuff and hunt Thresher Maws!"

"I hope _my_ cousins don't do that; I don't wanna meet a Thresher Maw!"

They spent the rest of recess playing pirates and corsairs and seeing who could make the best ship gun noise.

When they went back in, they spent the rest of Free Time drawing ships and talking about Ms. Smelly Butt-To-The-Face, and debating whether or not perfume might make a difference.

And at the end of the day, Thracius had chosen the sometimes-unpleasant Kal'Torin as his friend, and nobody else.

"Well, how was it?" Tali asked as he got into the skycar after waving 'bye' to Kal.

"Super horrible at first." he spread his arms to exaggerate, and she pulled him into a hug. "But Kal's my friend now. Our teacher, she's super smelly, like armpits."

His mother giggled at that, and he felt it through her chest as she let go of him, and he settled back into the seat. "Armpits, huh? Better not let her hear you say that!"

"I didn't. I won't. I know, it's kinda mean. But it's true!" he insisted.

"Just because it's true, doesn't always mean you need to say it out loud." she told him wisely as he buckled up. "Sometimes, you just have to let things be."

"So... I _can't_ borrow some of your perfume? Kal and I were going to try spraying her, to see if it helped."

This resulted in a 'no' and a burst of laughter, and despite the originally rough day, Thracius couldn't help but feel the same way he'd felt when his adoptive mother had first touched him; like it was _right_ , like he _belonged_ , _right here_ , like it was his freaking _destiny_ to be with her and Garrus.

Like this was what 'happily ever after' felt like. And as far as 'happily ever after's went...

He really liked this one. And there was nothing, _nothing_ in the galaxy that could ever ruin it.

Not even His Smugness Rin'Gerrel.

* * *

 _Whoops, I got distracted, MAJORLY. Sorry, guys. I got halfway through this chapter, got writers block, and only managed to conquer it today. I got distracted by a new fic for Destiny i started writing, Losing Time, taking my own Way Down, then I started writing Mass Effect drabbles to try to cure my block._

 _Funnily enough, the thing that finally helped me beat wit was a fic I wrote on a dare. I wrote a Javik and Garrus buddycop fic, if you can believe it, and they're very quickly becoming my BroOpt. Thanks a lot, You Know Who You Are; I edited this chapter big time to make adjustments to they're dynamic._

 _Hence why this chapter is call 'Dynamic'._

 _Seabo7: Wolves of the Beyond, actually; book 6 to be precise.*waits for pm that never arrives* Do you have ADHD, too!?_

 _TheIdiocyWizard: Just gotta say; great username. 10/10. I hear you on the 'lazy' part. I usually wind up typing 'lol' as a default review for a bunch of things._

 _BarbaraA: I've felt your pain. As for Garrus' leg, I plan on writing a separate companion fic about that much later on. I'm just gonna see how things go, now that I have Losing Time to work on, too._

 _Again, one day, I shall explain the pineapple inside joke, but first, I must find a way that makes sense..._

 _For those interested in the buddycop fic, it's posted, quite appropriately, under the title "Challenge Accepted"._

 _Next up begins the action part of Thracius' childhood. The Terminus System's are getting antsy, and, well, Rannoch it like that intimidating guy on the bus toddlers want to poke at just to see how much they can get away with..._

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	7. Part 2: Changes and Fire

_Thracius stood alone at the top of the ridge, looking down at the deserted ruins that he used to call home. All his childhood haunts seemed to have been set on fire at some point, and the once life-filled town was now nothing more than a derelict ghost of the past._

 _It had been abandoned when the first bombs dropped._

How did it come to this?

 _All those years ago, when the war was just labeled as 'skirmishes', when Aria was just poking the bear and testing the waters, he'd thought that would be the only bullet-fire he would ever have to see._

 _It felt... strange, yet right, to finally have his childhood delusions proved wrong._

 _"Thrace." he turned his head as Sotta joined him, the she-turian's bright mint-colored eyes searching his own fire-colored ones. "We're almost ready. Better hurry before Mordin has a conniption fit or Javik pulls a muscle- his face hasn't stopped doing that 'I'm going to kill something' look since we landed."_

 _"Sound like Javik, alright." He sighed. Honestly, it was a little weird to be dragging the prothean around. He took one last look at home._

 _"Thracius." Sotta said firmly. "She's fine. If anything you've told me about your mother is true, it's the Horizons I'm worried about."_

 _"Yeah." he rubbed the back of his neck, scratching an itch he couldn't quite get to. "Yeah, you're probably right."_

 _As he scratched, he was careful not to snag his talons on his bio-amp._

* * *

 **Many Years Earlier...**

"So... what is this?" Garrus asked as he stepped into the office. His son's head peaked out from behind one chair, Kal'Torin's from the other, before both vanished. The Quarian boy's mother was there as well, looking as unpleasant as ever.

Now at age seven, Thracius was smarter than he had been... but he was not, as he had promised, entirely using his powers for good. This time, however, had nothing to do with pranks; not if Rin'Gerrel's black eye had anything to say about it. The Admiral and his son stood, both looking equally ferocious, while Rin's seemingly pregnant mother sat serenely, looking ever-quiet, and ever-patient in a sharp contrast to both her boys. _I wished her husband was that calm._

It would be a favor to the galaxy. Gerrel hadn't gotten along well with Tali since the fiasco with her father and the Geth, and the bad blood had escalated when the Admiral ordered the Geth dreadnought destroyed... with her, Legion, Shepard, and Garrus himself still on it. There hadn't been an agreement between the two since, and the rivalry seemed to have continued with the next generation.

"You're son got into a fight today." The School head, Tere'Val, told him coolly as he took a seat. He was still in his combat armor.

"Dude, is that _blood_?" Kal asked immediately, eyes shining like the manic child he was, pointing at what was, indeed, a splotch of blood he'd missed while cleaning up after the last mission."I got some too, when Rin decked me, see, it's-"

"Quiet, Kal!" the boy's mother snapped. There was, in fact, blood on the boy's face, from a nosebleed no less, though said nose didn't appear to be broken, thank goodness. Thracius' little friend was quite the odd fellow, he'd give him that. A _very_ odd fellow. _Why do I have the feeling this kid would get along well with Grunt?_

"Why were they fighting?" he asked the principle in an equally cool voice, leaning back with his arms crossed over his chest.

"Oh, stop with your posturing, Vakarian!" Gerrel snorted, gesturing to indicate the turian's form. Garrus simply held up a hand asking for silence, fixing the woman across from him with a stare he often used on krogan, just for kicks.

"Rin called you barefaced." Thracius blurted, and he looked at his son in surprise. The younger turian's left mandible was scratched, but not bleeding, and he was twisting one corner of his shirt in a nervous habit. "And he said mom was a bad Admiral-"

"Then he called me slime kid!" Kal interjected, earning a light whack from his mother.

"Kal, you were not invited to speak!" she told him.

"According to the other kids, Thracius threw the first punch." Garrus raised a brow plate and looked from Rin's defiant, bruised and scratched face, to Thracius, to Kal.

"Well, seems pretty cut and dry to me." he shrugged. "Just give all three of 'em slaps on the wrists, keep 'em inside a few recesses, and don't call me while I'm in a firefight. Simple."

"Your wife wasn't available; overseeing the transfer, I hear." The adults in the room all adapted frown that were quickly hidden, but the young turian and the room kept his eyes fixed on his father's face curiously. "And we're trying to adapt a more... interactive approach to problem solving. And that is also one of the reasons you're here."

She took out three sheets of paper, setting them out for all three parents to see.

"We gave each child involved a sheet with listed scenarios and what to do in them. You son's were...well, see for yourself. And Kal's weren't much better." she told him sheepishly, handing him Thracius' 'social homework'.

1\. You fall on the playground and scrape your knee. What do you do?

Answer: "get up and deel with it."

2\. A bully trips you and makes you fall. What do you do?

Answer: "get up, deel with it, and tel him the gost of comander sheperd is goin to haant him for the rest of his lif."

3\. A classmate is being annoying and you want him/her to stop. What do you do?

Answer: "tap her mowth shut."

4\. You overhear a classmate planning to prank a teacher. What do you do?"

Answer: "ofer too help."

And so the list continued. He looked at Thracius, and hoped his eyes said what he couldn't say out loud(at least, not in present company).

 _I'm proud of you, son._ Not so much of the spelling(he could let that slide, the kid was only seven after all), but the honesty and artistry of the answers.

"Can I keep this?" he blurted out loud. Val raised an eyebrow. "To show his mother, so he can be _properly_ punished?"

 _Not so I can frame it and hang it on the wall, no-siree!_ Joking aside, he owned this kid a treat. He made sure to pass Thracius a wink as he spoke next.

"He is in for it _big time_ when we get home." he purred, getting up. "In fact? You know what son? That aeronautics show you wanted to go to, lets just leave that alone! Come on, I think we're done here."

Thracius hopped out of his seat, making a show of looking dejected, and once both father and son had left the room, Gerrel let out a sigh.

"He's going to spoil that child today..."

* * *

"'Get up and deal with it'? Seriously?" James burst into laughter. "Scars, that kid deserves damn metal!"

 _"Tell me about it."_ the turian agreed from over the vid call. _"Look, you think you guys can handle the rest of clean up without me?"_

"We _can_ , but we won't like it." the N6, near N7, supplied a humorless smirk. "Things are never fun when Javik's in charge."

 _"Just do me a favor, and don't let him space_ everything _."_ Garrus nodded. _"By the way, I'll show you guys a copy of that 'homework' when I get back. It's a comedic gem."_

 _"What's that mean?"_ asked a small voice from off-screen.

 _"It means, Thracius, that this"_ -he held up a piece of paper- _"is one of the best things I've ever read. Grammar aside. I wish I could backsass my bosses like this and get away with it..."_

 _"But-but-it wasn't backsass! I was just being honest! That's what she said to do, to be honest!"_ Honesty? _E_ _ither that kid is total bull, or he's the most beautiful thing in the galaxy since nachos._ The galaxy needed more kids that could say 'get up and deal with it' honestly and with a straight face.

"Well, I gotta go; the 'warden' is making his rounds." on the other end of the line, Garrus nodded.

 _"See you whenever."_

 _"Bye Uncle James!"_ a cheery chirp managed to interject before the line went dead. _Huh. 'Uncle James'. Kinda like the sound of that..._

"Have the mercenaries been secured?" the human suppressed a groan at the sound of Javik's voice.

* * *

"Okay, so, which one first?" his father asked as they entered the fairgrounds. Thracius had to resist, and with quite an effort as well, the urge to scream.

"I wanna see the Xerias!" was the first thing out of his mouth. Two years later, and ships were still his favorite thing in the galaxy.

"I don't think they'll have that here." he tried to contain his disappointment. "But, I hear there's a Normandy-class vessel here somewhere..."

A very large field on the edge of town now played host to ships of all different sizes and shapes. Most were quarian, but other species had come as well to show off their works. Similar shows were happening all over the planet, and even in orbit; in the years since the Reaper War, Rannoch had become _the_ place for the _only_ ship expo in the galaxy. What had started as a quarian tradition to honor their past as galactic pilgrims, had quickly become something more.

His father said it represented and reminded people about the 'unity' or whatnot that the different species had had during the big War, a bunch of noble stuff that was mostly drowned out of the child's head as he took in just _how many_ ships there were!

And the people, _ancestors_ , there were so _many_! He held on tight to his father's hand, determined not to get lost or trampled in the mass of people who'd traveled from different towns just to be here.

"What's it called?" he asked. His father had always spoke fondly of that particular ship.

"The _London Bound_ , I think. Real next-gen stuff in there, too, if I'm not mistaken." his father looked thoughtful. "From what I know, it was a collaborative build between just about every species. There are a few more like it, but _London_ 's the prototype; once you get the real deal, prototypes kind of fade into the background."

"Okay!" There were no word in... well, there probably _were_ words in the dictionary that could describe how awesome this was and how excited he felt, but he probably couldn't spell or pronounce them.

Either way, he was just about skipping as his father lead him by the hand towards one of the bigger ships that had landed. To his disappointment, they weren't allowed in, not all the way, but there was a presentation about some of the _London Bound_ 's capabilities on the ramp of the Shuttle Bay. Ones that, he noticed, didn't give a lot of detail, which was a little more disappointing, but they were allowed to ask questions.

He stood on his toes and jumped up and down until he was called on.

"If it's based on the _Normandy_ , doesn't it have stealth systems?" he asked pressingly. "How long can they run for? What's it's drive core model? How well does it run at NLS? How fast can it lift off from a planet? How many snacks can you keep on board?"

The human in Alliance blues who'd been giving the lecture looked both amused and surprised at the questions. "Well, kid, for starters, yes, she does have stealth systems. But we aren't allowed to talk much about those, I'm afraid. Classified. It has a unspecified upgrade of the Tantalus drive core, and as for NLS and all flight-related matters, you'd have to ask the pilot. Exit speed really depends on the atmosphere of the planet, and our on-board rations are... extensive. A bit too extensive, sometimes, my first officer is getting a plump around the middle."

And so it continued for some time more before the lecture was over, and they were told to file off the ship.

"Thracius, stay here a moment." his father told him at the entrance. "There are a couple of things I want to tell the Captain."

"About his fat First Officer?" he asked.

"No, just some... general warnings about some of the things his crew might be up to during shore leave." was it just him, or did his father look... antsy?

"Is it about the pirates Uncle James was with?" he asked. Garrus let out a heavy breath between his teeth.

"Can't hoodwink you, can I? Keep that up, it's a good trait to have. But, yeah. There are some bad people on the border, but there's nothing to worry about. Not for you or your mom, at least." he patted Thracius on the head. "The Fleet can handle it."

The little turian nodded vigorously, and his father walked away to speak to the Captain. As he did so, Thracius started scoping out the ships closest to them, trying to decide which one he wanted to see next.

That was when he heard the word he'd started hating the most since starting school.

"Hey, Privileged!" just the _way_ that word seized his heart with cold talons, the way he _hated_ that word! And Thracius didn't hate much, no; the only other things he'd ever hated were the Reapers. Well, the Reapers and that gross meat thingy his dad had tried cooking once(his father was many things, but a cook was not one of them).

But it could safely be said that Thracius Vakarian hated the word 'privileged' with all his tiny little might, and it was all thanks to Rin'Gerrel.

And seeing the taller(but not by much) quarian boy running towards him with a rock in one hand and a look of fury on his face was not any better than the horrible word the other child had shouted.

The _best_ thing to do would be to run to his father; Garrus would protect him, no doubt. At least, if there wasn't a crowd streaming into the Bay, blocking a direct path.

So, Thracius did the only other thing he could do, with Rin bearing down on him, black eye making the ugly look on his face even uglier. He ran like only a turian could run; very, very fast, even at his young age. He ran behind the docked shuttle and towards the corresponding door in the back of the Bay. He skid to a halt when he realized he'd entered engineering. What was unmistakably the Drive Core shone and hummed at the center. There was only one man in the room, and thank goodness he had headphones on.

Thracius crept along the back of the wall; there was another door, if he remembered correctly, that lead in from the Bay. He could go through that and practically be right next to his dad, so-

He froze with terror when he came face-to-face with Rin.

"You're not the only one who's clever, Privileged." he sneered. Thracius staggered backwards, and landed on his behind. Rin flipped the rock in his hand. "I wonder how hard you have to hit to give a snotty, privileged turian a black eye? Lets find out, huh? Lesson started."

Thracius searched frantically for a way out, and his eyes fell on a lever on the wall. He couldn't read what it said, written words didn't translate, but it looked like a fire alarm. Twisting away from Rin as the other boy tried to force him down, and kicking the quarian in the stomach as he did so, Thracius ran for the alarm, and only just managed to jump high enough to pull it.

It sounded an alarm, alright.

But more alarming than the alarm was the sudden ringing in his ears, a static itch building slowly as Rin screamed and ran, and the man at the Engineering Station worked frantically. For a few moments, he was confused as to why Rin would run from a simple sound... but then he noticed his talons.

His talons were glowing.

* * *

 _Wow! See! My block_ is _gone(takes two months to update again)!_

 _For those who think this is going into Marty Sue territory... making a character biotic doesn't make them a mary sue. Making that character perfectly perfect and important in every aspect? That's a mary sue, and if the trolling social homework wasn't enough to tell you Thracius isn't perfect, I'll find something else to make that clear._

 _This chapter is also a warning to those who experience the urge to push buttons when they don't know what said buttons do._

 _Spiritstrike: I'm glad to have caught your interest, and always welcome more reviewers! I love writing bits about the crew, they're just the most irresistible slightly-dysfunctional family ever. yeah, they're grade schoolers, of course there's going to be some kid language. It helps that I never grew up._

 _seabo7: Oddly enough, I never really did a play through with Javik. Actually the only major ME3 expansion I_ don't _have. I still remember the day i was told there was a member of the Normandy crew I'd never met, resulting in a frenzy of research into his character... resulting in the conclusion that in Javik, there was opportunity for some serious comedic prose. And yeah, after all the flops DC has had in the film industry lately? Yes, DC is that bad. though, Man of Steel wasn't awful. The entire beginning was well-done._

 _HelenTheMoon: I'm glad the crew charmed you! The pineapple thing is a bit of an inside joke, and yeah, Garrus likes Marvel. Don't see how he's anything like Batman, though. Pretty sure GotG would be his favorite MCU film, since we know he's secretly into music._

 _I was going to post this chapter later, but the review count is the same as the Favorites count, and for some reason I hate see the number fourteen twice when I look at the story stats. It's just driving me crazy for some reason.(next thing I know, both counts wind up as something ugly like nineteen and there is eternal agony)_

 _I truly enjoyed giving my first sneaky introduction to Sotta. I've already got her character mapped out, and I'm already in love with writing her. Some characters are like that._

 _Next stop, Garrus faces his first major crisis as a daddy!_

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	8. Super Powers, Anybody?

When the alarms went off, the captain swore, and angrily asked what someone named Percy was doing in Engineering; someone had pulled the emergency discharge on the drive core.

Naturally, the first thing Garrus did was usher the crowd out, imploring them not to panic as the mistake(the idiotic mistake) was rectified. He felt his gizzard twist when he saw Thracius wasn't where he had left him. He craned his neck over the crowd, trying to look for his son, wondering if he might have bolted as soon as the alarms went off.

Relief flooded through him when he felt something latch onto him from behind, and looked down to see the boy. Relief, quickly replaced by shock when he saw what was happening.

"Make it stop! It won't stop!" the young turian sobbed into his leg, barely audible above the alarms, shaking like a leaf in the wind as the unmistakably glow of dark energy rose from his body.

"Hey, try to relax, don't panic, Thracius, don't cry." he picked the child up in his arms, trying to calm him, brain working at impossible speeds to try to figure out what exactly he should do. In the end, the inner turian part of him said, quite clearly; _'hide him'_. Garrus dashed down the ramp like a thresher maw was behind him(and he'd done his fare share of running from thresher maws in the past eight years, so he was quite good at running from them), hoping nobody would notice his son was _glowing_.

"It still won't s-stop!" Thracius cried. "A-and it k-keeps buzzing _everywhere_!"

"I know, Thras, I know, we're almost to the car." The cabal. Spirits, if the cabal found out about him... with number still so low from the war... they'd taken custody of children as young as five in the past, but would they have that kind of authority out here, on quarian soil?

"Make it stop, dad!" If only he could! Dammit, he'd fought and lived beside biotics for years, but he knew nothing about them!

As soon as they got to the car, he practically tore the door opened and climbed in, trying to remember anything that might help.

Funnily enough, the memory that came to mind was the only 'soft' one he had of Jack, who'd died during the Battle of London. When they were evacuating the Grissom Academy, not all the biotic students had been teenagers. The younger children had been kept in the middle of the 'pack' during the run for the shuttles, but one of the ten-year-olds(at least, he thought she was ten, it was hard to tell with human children) had been panicking, powers flaring uncontrollably. He swore, he would never forget what Jack did next.

She'd gotten down on one knee, eye-level with the kid, and used a voice nobody had probably heard from her again afterwards. It was a moment he could remember word-for-word. So... he repeated it.

"Think about an ocean." he told his son quietly, looking him in the eye. Thracius nictitating membrane was blinking rapidly to try to shed the UV-resistant film that had built up in the child's eyes(the closest thing turians had to tears). "You know how the tide rises, then falls?"

Still sniffing, Thracius nodded. "Picture it, in your head. Just that. Picture the tide pulling out, and breath in time with the waves. In, and out, buddy. In and out."

 _Thank the spirits we live near the sea..._ As Thracius' breathing slowed, he rocked the child back and forth, pressing his chin against rhe boy's forehead as he treid to think of what came next.

Call, Tali, of course; that was the first thing he should do, right now. But after? What if he flared up at school? What if the cabal found out? He held Thracius a little tighter.

No. The cabal wouldn't find out. They would never find out, ever. If they found out, not only would Thracius be doomed to a life of monotony in a military that may waste his talents in a cabal unit, but if he was powerful enough, he might be taken from Rannoch, from childhood. Garrus could still remember what Shepard had told him about Kandros, and who could ever forget how bad Saren went? It was pretty much tried and proven that a life wasted in a Cabal was bound to end badly; mercs and rogue Specters, and those rumors about that shady business with training young humans a few decades back.

Thracius would not be starved of a normal life; he'd make sure of it.

"Am I gonna die?" he whimpered into Garrus' armor.

"No, no, you're not going to die." he reassured, though chilled by the question. "You just... have a tiny glowing problem, is all. It's not going to kill you."

'Tiny glowing problem' didn't begin to describe it.

"But wh-what's wrong with me?"

"...Remember when we watched that old earth super hero movie? Spider-Man?"

"Uh-huh."

"Remember how he got bit by the spider, and then he got super powers?"

"You mean now I'm Spider-Man? B-but there wasn't any spiders! I didn't g-get bit!"

"No, you aren't Spider-Man." Garrus chuckled, and Thracius looked up at him, looking slightly disappointed.

"Then did I get super strength? Like Captain America? Did I just get super hero-ed?" he asked, eyes wide.

"Sort of." he flashed his son a small grin.

* * *

"MOM! MOM I GOT SUPER POWERS!" Thracius stormed down the stairs the moment Tali came home. Garrus had called her when he got back to the safehouse -turned-regular-house. He'd also made another call, which his wife had seconded; a call to the only person he knew who had experience with training biotic children to control themselves.

He just hoped she wasn't busy. And thank goodness Tali came when she did; it gave him an excuse to hang up on the third person he had to call.

"Look, Javik when the council asks why I'm ignoring them, tell them-and use these exact words- to suck it. I've got to go." he ended the call before the prothean could reply, and before he could have second thoughts about telling the council to 'suck it'. _Well, he's the last of his kind, so at least there's no chance of political backlash..._ And the council wouldn't _dare_ reveal that he hadn't died in the Battle of London like most thought.

"DAAAAAD, swear jaaaaar!" he groaned and planted his forehead on his desk. _Spirits, it's less like he has good hearing and more like he's freaking psychic!_

"That's one conversation with the council I wouldn't mind listening in on." Tali commented as she enter the room, Thracius in tow(and toting the swear jar). The child rattled the glass jar under Garrus' nose, and the older turian deposited his penance.

"There you go, you greedy little entrepreneur." he sighed.

"I hope you never learn you lesson!" Thracius chirped as he strode out with a pleased look on his face. The jar wasn't as full as it used to be, in the early years. If they ever got Wrex in here, though...

"What happened?" Tali demanded as soon as their son had left the room. He buried his face in his talons.

"He says he was running from some kid from school-class bully. Won't give me a name, but I have a guess." he began. "Tried to hide in the Engineering room of the ship we were touring, pulled a switch, and that's when he stared flaring up. He said he thought it was a fire alarm."

"And what was it really?"

"Emergency Core Discharge."

"Keelah..."

"I don't think anybody saw us- at least we've got that."

"You keep saying that! Why is it so important? Are you _ashamed_ of him?"

"What!?" He flared his mandibles wide. "No! We've been friends with more biotics than I can count on both hands-Shepard was one of them! I think it's safe to say I've long gotten over the prejudices most my kind have. But turian biotics are rare, and valuable, especially after so many were lost during the war. Think about it, Tali; the Baby Boomers are only three or two at this point. It'll take generations before any military is what it used to be. Biotics take priority... and you do remember what Shepard told us about Kandros, right?"

"You think the Hierarchy would take a seven-year-old, a _Vakarian_ who lives on _Rannoch_ , and ship him off to Palaven to train him?" she almost seemed amused by the thought, but the dark look Garrus fixed her with eliminated her skepticism.

" _Especially_ a Vakarian." he spat his last name like it was poison; he hated being a symbol, and the whole surviving _Normandy_ crew knew it. "A normal kid on Rannoch? They would try, but it would be half-hearted. But to them, Thracius would be like... like the crown jewel. They'd get to brag, they'd get to say, 'we've got a Vakarian in the Cabal, look how strong we are!'. And they've been known to pull custody when numbers are too low. I think it's safe to say, their numbers have been low since the Reapers razed thirty of forty total units to dust."

"Ancestors..." Tali sighed, and sat on the bed. There were several beats of silence. "So, you told him he had super powers?"

" _You_ try explaining biotics to a panicky seven-year-old." he flicked his bad mandible. "I suppose it could be useful, though. Having him watch Doctor Strange might warm him up to the idea of learning from an 'Ancient One'."

"Better not call her that when she's around to hear it." Tali giggled.

"You know Samara; she'd probably just stand there." he shrugged. "Only thing she has in common with Javik; when you tease them, they just stand there and _look_ at you. You know? The 'you aren't even using half you brain cells right now' look?"

"How could I forget it?" she asked cheekily. "It's the only look they make whenever _you're_ around!"

He gasped in mock hurt. "Are you saying they don't like me!? I'll have you know, Javik only called me 'primitive' _once_ during the last mission!"

"I can only imagine what he'll call you when you get back. I still can't believe you told him to blow off the Council." she shook her head. Small feet pounded outside the doorway.

"Dad, the glowy thing happened again!" Thracius whined, looking particularly upset. "I was putting forks on the table, and I didn't even do anything, and then when I glowed, they started floating! Am I Magneto?"

"No, gravity is just stupid." Garrus stood. "When your biotics flare up you... you cause gravity... uh... farts..."

"Garrus!" Tali gasped as Thracius giggled.

"Hey, I'm doing my best, here!"

* * *

 _And here we have Garrus trying to both explain biotics to a young child, and lighten the mood. Also, I'm taking his status as an MCU enthusiast and using it. My thought was that, how better to put Thracius at ease with his situation than evoke the super heroes he's probably been watching? As a Marvel fan myself, I feel this is an appropriate course of action._

 _Also, good news; since the last update, I finally graduated High School. Huzzah! I had to take an extra semester because I failed math and senior english, but now, all that is behind me! Writing fanfiction is only a fraction of the things I've done while reveling in this triumph that took nigh on fourteen years to reach! It feels SO GOOD!_

 _Bigguestinboots: Hehe, I'm imagining it... Sadly, according to his Shadow Broker dossier, you are ten times more likely to listen to things like AC/DC if you're Garrus Vakarian. 'Southern Nights' and other GotG soundtrack is included, because... well... Marvel fan. That's just how we operate. I'm glad I managed to capture the realism in that chapter! Just wanna say, I have a profound respect for all our armed forces; I've wanted to be a Marine since before I started High school. Sadly, I'm not qualified, due to the fact I have autism, and need to take meds for ADHD and anxiety. I'm also a bit of a wimp(just ask my school librarian, lol)._

 _Spiritstrike: I, too, found the situation on turian biotics to be very interesting; that's why I decided to make Thracius one, it's a big plot point. Thankfully, Garrus has spent so much time around biotics, he doesn't have the same views as the rest of his kind. Needless to say, he certainly isn't going to tell Castis, though! And he certainly isn't going t let the Cabal have our sweet summer child, here!_

 _seabo7: Lol, I know what you mean; all this talk about 'safe spaces'... when this year's incoming freshmen get out into the real world, they're going to be in for a HUGH amount of shell shock when they realize they aren't going to get special treatment because they're gay or a girl... or get a band-aid when they stub a toe. I legit had a girl in my class once in hysterics because she tor a nail. *ultimate eye roll* Yeah, some of the old crew are definitely not going to let Garrus' son walk into a burning building, so to speak. At least, not without them in tow!_

 _HelenTheMoon: Thracius is a sweet, precious summer child who deserves all the love in the galaxy. Yeah, Javik would not be good with children. WREX IS A DEFINITE 'NO'! SURPRISE! It's so hilarious that you said that, because it really IS Samara; she's the only one on the old crew who actually raised biotic children; three of them. And I refuse to think that asari children don't have little 'problems' early in life with those powers._

 _You guys have no idea how badly I wish Thane were still alive. Would have loved to bring him in here and get him into total 'dad' mode training Thracius not to make forks float... floating forks are generally bad, and should be discouraged._

 _Just thought you would also like to know, I have started some work on a tie-in fic for Out of Tricks. A prequel, more like it, detailing some Garrus and Javik stuff; namely, why the latter sticks so close to the former, and how Garrus lost his leg. For the part about the leg, I've considered giving the fic an 'M' rating. It will also include stuff about Garrus' team and Javik's old crew, and there is going to be a LOT of explosions. BIG ones._

 _Like, 'let's name the crater after them' kind of big._

 _The working title is 'The Parting Shot'. I'm pretty sure there's another fic in this archive with the same title, but I still can't come up with a better name, so, I might not change the title; it's pretty appropriate, given the contents I have planned, and since this is fanfiction and not actual novel writing, I don't have to worry about copyrights!^^_

 _Shout out to ' **whotellsyourstory** ', who has exchanged several PMs with me, has written a fairly good time travel fic, and dared me to write that Javik and Garrus buddycop fic, which was appropriately named _Challenge Accepted _!_

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	9. A Matter of Control

**Codex: The Jacqueline Nought Foundation**

 ** _A common misconception about non-asari with biotic skill is that they do, in general, need to consume more food than average members of their species. This is not necessarily true. There are multiple techniques employed by non-asari biotics to minimize the effect power usage has on their appetite; biotics like Javik, as example. In the time I knew him, I rarely saw any deviation in his eating habits, even after particularly strenuous battles._**

 ** _I won't go into explaining such techniques or how they work; just that more experienced biotics can employ them with years of practice and study, and no small amount of concentration. Another factor that must be considered is that a non-asari biotic only needs to increase caloric intake depending on how much they have been using their powers. For example; Thracius Vakarian was well-known for disliking his powers, and therefore rarely used them unless absolutely necessary._**

 ** _However, after the Retaking of Turvess... lets just say, I've never seen any other turian pack it in like he did after that particular battle. Other than that, he ate as much as any normal turian did, both during and after his childhood. Sadly, not all families know this. Considering most of the 'celebrating' done after the Reapers were defeated took place in hastily put-up refugee shelters, a damaged Citadel, and overcrowded, often-damaged ships stranded in the Sol system, the resulting baby boom of 2187-2188 saw a spike in non-asari children with biotic skill. Sadly, most of the parents assumed this would result in an immediate and costly increase in funds spent on food._**

 ** _The Jacqueline Nought Foundation was founded in 2188 by Jacob Taylor and Kahlee Sanders. It's goal was to help these families and biotic children across the galaxy by educating them, and teaching the children to wrestle control of their powers at a young age to minimize costs, as well as accidents resulting from loss of control. I knew several experienced asari trainers who joined the organization._**

 ** _Among them was former Justicar Samara S'Ron._**

* * *

Raising three Ardat-Yakshi children had been no walk in the park. Their increased power had lead to more... accidents than other asari children were prone to. When Jacob had approached her about his idea, she had realized something; though the Justicars were no more(her predictions about their fate by the end of the war had come more or less true), she was still needed, and not just as Falere's mother.

And so, over the past couple of years, she had gained pleasure in coaching several young biotics, of varying species, to better control their powers. The call from Garrus had been... surprising, but at the same time not very shocking, knowing the young man's penchant for attracting unsual or dangerous situations.

What was also surprising was that Javik ambushed her on the way out of Rannoch's orbital decon checkpoint(a light decontamination field was a required visit for all who wished to travel to Rannoch). The prothean uncloaked in the elevator and fixed her with an intense four-eyed stare that told her everything she needed to know.

 _How surprising._ She thought.

"If he's chosen not to tell you yet, then assume it is for a good reason, Javik." the sneer that played across his face for a fraction of a second told her she'd assumed correctly.

"If it is important enough that he should call _you_ to Rannoch, I deserve to know what is happening." He shot back. "It is unwise not to inform one's allies of an impending attack."

"You can have my assurances; it is not a threat. Far from it." she edged away from him slightly to minimize the chances of him being able to read her without her notice. "And you are still his friend. You simply have no experience in the field of skill he requires. He also wants as few to know about this as possible; the turian hierarchy is... sensitive to such matters. There are risks that Garrus wants to avoid taking."

"And what 'field of skill' do you mean?" Javik inquired. The elevator stopped, dinging, and the prothean re-cloaked. She gave a wane smile to the subtle shimmer of air where he was hiding.

"Children, young one. Children." she told him, walking out. She thought she heard a huff of air that could have been a scoff, but as far as she could tell, he didn't follow her onto the shuttle. Doubtless, the noise was made to the ridiculousness of being tagged as 'young one'. Many species were like that.

Regardless of how long he'd spent in cryo, Javik was, indeed, young. At least, to her eyes. All except some asari and krogan were. Javik was young, Garrus was young, Tali was young, little Liara T'Soni was still young but growing fast mentally.

And now, to deal with a true child of the tender age of seven.

* * *

It was a nice little place they'd chosen to live. The sea to one side, the forest to another, the rocky lands of Rannoch all around. The house itself was well-built, and she could see several defensive positions in the design. Likely done on purpose; there were windows in the attic that were placed for the convenience of the sniper that lived in the house half the time. The lack of obstructions and cover on the pathway up to the house would give him clear shots on any intruding force, and the garden wall placed on either side of said path halfway up to the house was made sturdy, and an excellent place from which Tali could ambush those who made it past her husband's sniper rifle with a close encounter with her shotgun.

The windows on the ground floor would be easy to throw biotic or tech attacks from, and she had the feeling there might be a reinforced basement installed as a fallback point if need be. The house was unplotted, well hidden, and easily defendable. No, the Vakarians hadn't taken any chance at all with their future; that much was obvious even at a glance.

She couldn't hep a small smile when the door opened even before she could get there. She hadn't seen Garrus this nervous since his wedding on earth.

"I can see you've managed to keep him from destroying the property yet." she commented. Wit wasn't one of her strong suits, but he was the kind of person who was put at ease by humor.

Putting the parents at ease was one of the keys to succeeding in this line of work, she had learned. She didn't always succeed, in that respect; her old Justicar 'aura' had a way of showing up again at the worst times now and then.

"Yeah. We've been... managing. Told him something I remember Jack saying once to a kid, it seems to work really well." the turian shrugged, stepping aside so she could enter the house. There were pictures of the Normandy crew on the wall, and photos of Thracius and Tali on the mantelpiece, above which the burned, twisted remains of his old HMWSR rifle hung. _Ah, so 'Old Reliable' isn't as absent from his life as we thought._

The story of exactly how the rifle Shepard gave him during the hunt for Saren ended up melted varied from person to person, because the turian never told the same story twice. And since it happened during the Battle of London, people had been paying more attention to the Reapers than to Garrus' gun.

He told Tali it got shot out of his hands by Harbinger.

He told EDI that he used it to shield himself from a Banshee's attacks.

He told Grunt that he ran out of ammo, so he tied a belt of grenades to it and threw it like a spear into a hoard of Husks that were trying to flank Shepard's team.

He told Jacob that Harbinger likely directed the Brute that blasted his gun to pieces when he dropped it after tripping on a dead Marauder to do so to spite him personally.

He told Samara herself that he'd had to abandon it in a building that was promptly smashed and blown up by a dozen charging Brutes.

He told Ashley that he shoved it into a Harvester's main gun so it would blow up when it tried to shoot Wrex's unit of krogan down.

He told Javik he that he'd tripped and dropped it in lava.

And so the list of stories, each more ridiculous than the next, went on. He'd spent an inordinate amount of time complaining that no gun could replace Old Reliable. Well... until he and Javik found and raided what was ostensible an ancient stash of prothean weaponry shortly after the 'Incident We Don't Speak Of'. Javik didn't share _anything_ lightly, let alone his people's technology, but according to Liara, he'd handed Garrus the weapon that the turian most often carried these days without preamble.

Nobody knew for certain if he liked it as much as he had Old Reliable. She had the feeling that the human saying, 'my rifle is my best friend', applied here.

"Whatever you told him before hand, Javik took my arrival as a sign of impending attack. I encountered him on the way to my shuttle." she told the turian, setting her bag down neatly next to the couch. The whole setup of this living space was very... homey. "I suggest you further assure the others that the situation isn't that dire; I've heard the rumors about activity in these parts."

"Most of those rumors are true." Garrus sighed. "I wish they weren't. Honestly, I might even reach the point where I could go out and fight pirate all day and still be home for dinner. It's like they're trying to see how far they can press their luck."

"It would be difficult to start a war with the Terminus Systems, considering they have no official governing body." Samara agreed. "Declaring open hostilities would do nothing, as they are always openly hostile. That they seem unusually focused on Rannoch is, however, most concerning."

"We've got the geth, and the most powerful fleet in the galaxy." the young turian grimaced. "Aria's flying flunkies seem to like poking the bear."

She belied the term was actually 'flying monkeys', but Garrus' version was likely more accurate, so she chose not to comment.

"That being said... who else do you plan to tell about Thracius' status as biotic?" she asked. After the War, the Hierarchy would be enforcing it's forced enlistment for the cabals even more fiercely. Whoever Garrus told would, indirectly, have the boy's life in their hands. One slip of the tongue around the wrong person would be catastrophic if Thracius wished to make his own future.

And trusting one with the life of your child was different from trusting someone with your own life.

She knew, very well, the difference, and with great pain.

"You and Jacob, of course. Javik, definitely; he'll find out anyway, the brain-poking snoop. Ash, Wrex, Liara." he listed. "Maybe Miranda, if Tali lets me. She wants to tell Adams, of course, and she says there's a geth at the embassy she might trust if need be; Crypt, I think she said. Chakwas might be a must, but hey; I already told her about the time I dropped Sara Ryder when she was a baby, so I can safely say I tell Chakwas everything anyway. Never mention 'The Sara Incident' by the way. Please?"

He fixed her with a pleading look, and she nodded solemnly with a small smile.

It was a list that made sense.

You'd have better luck killing Javik than you would in getting him to spill anything Garrus-related.

Urdnot Wrex was much the same situation.

Likely, the only thing you would get out of Ashley was a string of curses and imprecations; from multiple species, as she had long since 'expanded her dictionary.'

Nothing need be said for Liara or Miranda, who were more careful and better than anyone at keeping secrets.

Gregory Adams, she had observed, was very much like a replacement father to Tali and had several children himself, and so would understand her want to protect the boy.

The geth race in general would probably die for any member of the Normandy crew(one could fancy it as some vestigial remains of Legion's attachment to them).

As a doctor, both Chakwas' skills and confidentiality would be valued in this situation.

The fact his list included people who could teach the boy defensive biotic skill didn't escape her notice either. Other than the fact Wrex was skilled in this respect, there was no other reason to include him, other than the fact he was part of the original Normandy ground team.

"So; where is the boy?" she asked. There was no sign of him anywhere.

"Out back, with Ragmore." Garrus jerked his thumb towards the dinning area, behind which seemed to be the back door.

"Ragmore?" she asked, raising a brow.

"He's our rou'tan."

"Ah."

* * *

He was a very beautiful child, and incredibly shy and sweet. She'd met a few asari who'd married men who had sons, and they had said there was something... special, about raising a little boy. That they were a different beast entirely, the dynamic was completely unique from that of a daughter. That it was a pity their species was mono-gendered, and therefore could never acquire the bond of mother and son naturally.

Samara couldn't help but smile at Thracius when he approached, half-hiding behind Garrus' leg, and holding Ragmore the rou'tan back with one hand, which was wrapped around the animal's collar as it's skeletal tail whipped back and forth.

"Hello, Thracius." she greeted. "My name is Samara; I'm here to help you learn to control your biotics."

At that the boy's eye's widened, and his neck stopped flushing blue. "Like how the Ancient One trained Doctor Strange?"

"Uh, yeah, kind of like that, son." Garrus confirmed nervously. She... was just going to assume this was some kind of learning or coping tool he'd used with the boy. "Except, uh... you're not exactly going to be jumping dimensions. Yet."

Oh dear. He'd over-exaggerated their powers. _I would think he'd know better, considering he spends so much time with biotics..._

"If you would feel comfortable with me doing so, I would like to conduct a small test first, to see what kind of power we're dealing with." she conceded to start. "It will take a while to get a hold of, but it isn't difficult or painful in any way."

"What do I have to do?" Thracius asked shyly. Samara lifted one hand slowly, and biotically lifted the living room table a few inches before setting it back down, Ragmore baying wildly and Thracius staring in amazement. She rummaged through her bag, and removed a fist-sized ball. Ragmore became even more upbeat, and Garrus had to hold the beast back.

"You, however, have the goal of merely moving the ball." she said, setting it on the table as Garrus forcibly removed Ragmore from the room.

* * *

Try as she might, Samara couldn't sleep. Sighing, she got out of the guest bed, and began to wander, as she often did when slumber didn't come easy.

Once Thracius had warmed up to her, he'd bombarded her with questions, asking far more than Garrus, and not all of them biotic-related.

Such as 'are you blue because you're cold'?

Or 'do boy asari have squid heads, too'?

And, most anomalous of all, 'to make square balloons, do you have to breath square air'?

But at least it wasn't as bad as 'if nothing is faster than light, how did the dark get there first'?

But none of those questions had anything to do with why she couldn't sleep. No, that had less to do with Thracius himself, and more to do with the fact she'd had to tell Tali and Garrus that their son might be the most dangerously powerful case she'd ever seen, and that they were lucky there hadn't been any accidents.

As she came to the living room again, Samara closed her eyes, sat cross-legged on the floor, and began to meditate, glowing faintly, on the moment when not just the ball, but the table began to float at the biotic command of a startled, wonder-eyed little turian boy.

* * *

 _Teacher Samara is best teacher. I hope she doesn't seem too OOC-ish, I never really got into her character a whole lot, but she was the most logical choice for teaching Thracius. I mean, can YOU imagine MIRANDA trying to teach a child? Or enduring the 'do you have to breath square air' question? That particular one, I got from my little brother. We say lots of weird stuff to each other, and some of the more ridiculous stuff will wind up in this story, because it's just the kind of things that young children would talk about._

 _Yes, I do believe they would complain about having apple hair and tasting purple. It happens to all of us._

 _seabo76: oh yes, Garrus is very good at describing these things. He's an expert, you know. Hope I delivered well on Samara!_

 _Spiritstrike: Marvel nerds for life! I can't wait for Infinity War, I'm losing my skittle of it all! Have you seen the clip where Ned causes a 'distraction' for Peter? it's hilarious, I love Ned. Yeah, the whole Cabal issue, like I said, will become a major plot point. This is something that's really going to affect Thracius, and it's going to change him as a character later down the road._

 _OfficialWeedTesterGuy: okay..._

 _In case ya'll were interested; I took the reboot hammer to my first ME fanfic, 'Ragnarok', in which the galaxy was a lost cause when the gang accidentally released a sun-destroying Reaper, and everyone ran to Andromeda because the Initiative was delayed before it launch in canon. The situation is basically a result of a very violent plug for the Dark Energy plot that I headcanoned into existence, and it turned ugly fast._

 _So, if you enjoy watching Garrus become legend on Eldaan, watching as Tali goes from tragic and suicidal to badass kett and remnant slayer, exploring Heleus with a traumatized Sara Ryder, seeing Liara fall for a blind researcher, oh, and Legion is alive just for kicks..._

 _Go check that out._

 _Speaking of Sara Ryder; knowing that Castis and Alec were buddies, I think the kids would have met at some point. And that Garrus would prove that only EXPERIENCED nine-year-olds should be able to hold babies(yes, do the math; he would have been eight or nine, the ages of both Garrus and the Ryder twins have been confirmed by devs)._

 _That all being said, don't forget to review! Losing Time hit 23 reviews, and I hate it when two fics have double-digit review counts exactly the same. It's annoying for some reason._

 _Fare Thee Well!_


	10. The Reset

After a week of training with aunt Samara, he was _finally_ allowed to go back to school.

"Stop squirming, Thracius! You're like an impatient rou-tan!"

"But I haven't seen Kal in FOREVER and EVER!"

"It hasn't been forever, Thracius."

"But it feels like it! It's just like when I'm hungry but you're still cooking, or when the microwave won't go fast enough!"

"A watched pot never boils." His mother told him wisely. "That's a human saying, and it's perfectly true."

Thracius heaved a sigh and settled for watching out the window as they drove to school. It was a cloudy day, and there was hardly anybody else driving.

"Now Thracius... I might be late today. In fact, I probably won't be able to make it at all. Samara's going to come get you." mother said. He looked up at her in surprise. _But... mom always gets me! Always!_ Not that he had anything against auntie Sam, she was great, but... it just felt... off.

"Why? Is something happening at your job?" he asked. He knew she was one of the Admirals. There were several, but her job was to coordinate with the geth, whatever that meant.

"Don't tell your friends at school, but yes. We're reseting the orbital defenses, and switching to a new system." she explained carefully. "Before, we were just being protected by the measures that were put up during the Reaper War. Now, we have to adjust."

"To the bad pirates dad's been talking about?" he had only caught snatches of conversation between his father and his friends, but they all sounded rather concerned about the pirates. His mother stiffened, muttered something under her breath that he didn't quite catch, and shook her head.

"It's nothing you have to worry about, Thracius. It's nothing you _should_ be worrying about." she assured him. "We're just replacing outdated tech; just like we replaced the extranet router last month."

"Oh. Okay." he relented, deciding not to pry further. His parents didn't like it when he asked about the pirates or 'worrying things'. He didn't know why they insisted on treating him like a baby sometimes; he remembered the Reapers, it wasn't like a bunch of silly pirates could be worse.

Could they?

* * *

"Thracius!" Kal ran at him when he hopped out of his mom's skycar, and rightly tackled him to the ground. "Where were you! Did something bad happen! Was it your parents!?"

"Oof, Kal, geroofme!" Thracius grunted.

"Settle down, you two!" his mother warned. "No rough-housing in the parking lot, get yourselves to class. I'll see you later, Thracius."

"See ya, mom, love you! tell dad bye again for me!" he called back. The door shut, and his mother drove away as Kal dragged him off to the school building.

"I was at home, I got sick, and _what_ about my parents?" he asked when Kal repeated his questions. The little quarian bit his lip, and kicked the dirt a little.

"No reason." he commented. "Just asking. Some people have bad parents."

"Why would you think my parents are bad?" Thracius asked, shocked. His mom was the nicest person in the galaxy, and his dad was the funnest. Nobody would think either of them were bad, not even at a glance! Unless... "A-are, i-is your mom a bad parent?"

Kal's face twisted into an expression of hate, and Thracius knew he'd stepped over his bounds. "Gee, what was your first clue? She's drunk half the time, and crabby the other half! It's not so bad when she forgets I'm a school, though. Just one more thing I don't have to worry about."

"T-that sounds awful." Thracius said awkwardly as he tried to think of a way to cheer his friend up. A possibility came to him, but his parents had said to keep it a secret. To never tell anybody... but...

Kal was his friend. His best friend, and his only friend. Surely, he would never, ever tell? Right?

"Hey... do you wanna see the _real_ reason I had to stay at home?"

* * *

That evening, during lunch, Thracius showed him. They hid in the special spot behind Building 2, and Thracius focused on his toy Alliance cruiser with all his might. Blue energy enveloped it, and the sharp, odd smell(that most would describe as ozone, though he didn't know it) filled the air as he glowed, too. The glowing used to scare him, but not anymore. Because he could make his ships fly with it!

"Ancestors. Hairy. Butts." Kal exclaimed. "No way! Dude, that's so awesome! Why didn't you tell me you were biotic?"

"Shhh! Keep it down!" Thracius asked, dropping the ship back into his hand and looking around cautiously. "You can't ever tell _anybody_ about this, or my mom and dad will know I told you, and they said I shouldn't tell anybody, but I totally know you won't tell."

"Why don't you want to tell anybody? You could be like, the most popular kid in school if you were biotic!" Kal said, exasperated.

"I dunno, dad just said it was important. He fought in the war, so I guess he knows important stuff when he sees it." he shrugged. "Anyway, it happened at the aeronautics show, and then auntie Sam came and showed me how to use it. Well, how not to use it accidentally, really."

"Who's auntie Sam?"

"One of my aunts, duh. She's an asari, and she's pretty cool. But she can be a little too serious sometimes, and dad says she needs to learn to laugh a little more."

 _"All students please return indoors in an orderly fashion and do as the teachers direct you."_

Thracius and Kal looked at each other and made faces. "Why are they ending recess early! We've only been out for like a minute!"

Despairingly, they gathered Thracius' ship back into his backpack, and began to trudge as slowly as possible back to the recess entrance. Overhead, there were several supersonic booms as ships entered the atmosphere. Now, it wasn't that uncommon, but Thracius liked to look up and try to identify the profiles if he could find the ships in time.

So, naturally, he stopped in the middle of the field.

"Thrace, let's go; the recess duties'll get us."

"Just a moment, I wanna see the ships!" he shrugged his friend off.

"Fine then; when you're in trouble, I'm not bailing you." Kal shrugged and walked away. Annnnd... there! There were the ships, they were...

He squinted in confusion. That was a fighter formation of the turian Hierarchy; he'd seen it in a documentary about their fighters. But the profiles didn't match turian fighters at all; these ships were ugly, and he couldn't even tell what model they were! He drew back his mandible in distaste. _Ugh, at lease replace that drive core! I can hear it misfiring from here!_

 _"All students return indoors in an orderly fashion. I repeat-oh, Ancestors!"_

Thracius' eyes widened as the ship broke off... and began firing their weapons. At the ground. And the middle one was heading right for them. He screamed.

* * *

The thing about syncing geth and quarian tech to work harmoniously was that it wasn't as easy as people thought. Sure, the geth could manipulate technology, but that wasn't the same as having a defense network specially designed to work in perfect junction.

Tali's omnitool buzzed. She sighed heavily as she picked it up and transferred the call to her comms. "What is it now, Garrus?"

 _"Mommy, I had a bad dream!"_ he whined.

"Sorry, but that only works with one turian, and you're not him." she giggled.

 _"Awww, I was certain it would, though!"_ her husband pouted. _"How is the little bugger, anyway?"_

"We got to school without any traffic. I know we live in the boonies, but it seems like everyone thinks the network will drop at any moment! They're acting like it's the end of the world." She rolled her eyes.

 _"Well, some places_ will _be defenseless longer than others."_ he pointed out. _"We'll do what we can to keep these creeps from trying anything, but there's no guarantee we'll be able to catch all of them. Get that new network up and running as fast as possible."_

"Tali Vakarian, all preparations are complete." Crypt notified her, sticking his head through the doorway. He was one of the geth that had been assigned to work with her when she was fist given this particular position.

Black and gray with several yellow accents, his full name was actually Crypt 21-3, with was stamped onto the side of his neck. At first, the odd naming habit had come across as weird, but the geth thought that, since not every geth would have an _original_ name, they should make it clearer as to which geth was which for the sake of organics. The numbers were their equivalent to a last name, and from what she understood, Crypt's meant that he was the third geth to choose that name, from server of origin twenty one.

It was all very confusing at first, but also a little funny that the geth were afraid of organics forgetting who was who.

"Be right there." she told him, before turning her attention back to the call. "Stay safe out there, Garrus."

 _"_ _You know me."_

"I have a shotgun, remember?"

 _"Please, you'd never do that in front of the kid."_

"Is Javik with you?"

 _"Is that even a question? Wouldn't be the demolition duo with just one guy."_

"Can everyone in the cockpit hear?"

 _"Yeah, why?"_

"Javik, slap him for me."

 _"Ow, hey! You're supposed to be on_ my _side!"_

 _"I would rather repeat the Bermuda incident than anger your mate."_

"And _that_ , Garrus, is why you won't do anything stupid." she smiled. "That, and you still owe Thracius an ice cream."

 _"Yeah, yeah. See you on the other side. Go do your programming stuff."_

"You know I will." she ended the call, sighed, and stood. Sincerely hoping that things wouldn't go wrong, she walked out, and ordered the reset and transfer to start.

* * *

Thracius felt like his gizzard was about to take a one-way express out his mouth. Still screaming, he ran for the forest on the other side of the field.

"They're attacking, they're attacking!" someone was screaming. Loud explosions rang in the distance.

"Thracius!"

"Everyone get inside!"

"But the buildings are where they're shooting at!"

"We're all going to die!"

"I want my mom!"

He ignored all of it; the fire, the ships, the children running and scattering everywhere as they panicked. He just charged at the forest. Maybe if he ran fast enough, and far enough, he could run all the way home. He could hear massive explosions hitting the ground, and he thought he could feel the vibrations. The sensations only drove him to run faster.

He wanted his mother. He wanted his father. he wanted anyone who could just make it _stop_. He could feel his biotics flaring in response to his panic, he could feel his heart pounding, his surroundings were all a blur except for what was directly in front of him.

Reality snapped back into place when he tripped. His chin hit the ground with a sting of pain, and forest dirt scraped the soft skin on his hands as he landed with a grunt. He pushed himself up slightly, heaving for breath, only just now noticing the stitch in his side from all the running. He remained still, only listening. He didn't know how long he spent waiting for the next bomb to drop. Minutes? Hours? But eventually he sat back on his haunches, did the breathing exercised Samara had taught him, and eventually stood up.

He looked up. The sun was setting. Hours, then. Funny, it hadn't felt like hours. Fear spiked through him at the possibility of accidentally time travel- a ridiculous notion to adults, but perfectly a possible problem if you were a scared child with an overactive imagination.

Somewhere behind him, a twig snapped. He jumped, whirling around, and the other person froze. It was a _batarian_ , with a _gun_ , and he was wearing strange, pale armor that was also scorched in places, perhaps from a crash. Blood had dripped and dried down the side of his face, and when their eyes met, a sneer overtook his features. Thracius snatched a rock off the ground, and threw it before the man could react.

"Go away!" he shouted as it hit the batarian in the chest. With a frightening yell, he raised his gun, and Thracius could only watch as-

A green field of biotic energy threw the offending batarian against a tree with a sickening crunch. He didn't get back up.

"I found him." an vaguely familiar voice informed, likely to someone on the other end of a comm line. A very strange individual stepped into view, and Thracius only recognized the prothean because of the _Normandy_ picture back home. "Alive; come to my position."

Unable to contain himself and his gratefulness, the young turian ran forwards, and hugged his father's best friend.

To which Javik was entirely unsure how to respond, earning no small amount of teasing from Goto, who of course, had to have arrived almost immediately afterwards.

* * *

 _Don;t think of it as a bad thing, Javik! You_ want _Thracius to like you!_

 _I'm going to have fun with all future conversations with Kasumi!*evil grin*_

 _Wow, this took longer than I thought. I got seriously distracted! No promises on how long the next chapter will take, just that we'll be meeting the rest of the gang!_

 _Spiritstrike: Yup, 'Auntie Sam' is going to have some very sweet moments with Thracius, purely for sheer fluff factor._

 _seabo7: Yeah. this, of course, will lead to some problems for him in the future._

 _RPGWarrior4824: Glad to hear you like the story and Thracius! I thought it was about time someone wrote a story about a happy ending with these two, even if Shep's gone._

 _Again, not sure how long it will be until next chapter, but Destiny 2's next big expansion is coming out in a couple of weeks, and it's LITERALLY a game-changer. Like, EVERYTHING is getting overhauled, from the UI to the weapons system, and there's going to be so much stuff the DLC adds. As a lore head, I'm going to spend a lot of time chasing said lore, as this expansion involves a lot of stuff that I find very interesting. Space kingdoms are always interesting. Fellow lore buffs(of ANY video game franchise) will agree with me and my reasoning for this quest._

 _That being said, yes; I did spend more time reading the codex in Mass Effect than I did playing the game. I'm just like that._

 _Fare Thee Well!_


End file.
